By Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart and Luc Cohen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. judge on Tuesday asked lawyers for President Donald Trump’s administration to ensure six military members who sued to stop an executive order targeting transgender troops are not removed from service before further court proceedings are held.
Trump’s Jan. 27 executive order said individuals “expressing a false ‘gender identity'” did not meet standards for military service. It said an individual’s use of a gender identity different from their sex “conflicts with a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle.”
At a hearing in Washington, D.C., federal court, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes told Justice Department lawyers representing the Trump administration to inform her by Wednesday whether they could ensure the six plaintiffs would not be removed from service or separated from their units.
The judge said that if the government cannot ensure that, she will hold a hearing on Friday over a potential temporary block to the policy. But if the government assures her of no changes to the plaintiffs’ status, she would not take further action until a Feb. 18 hearing over a longer-lasting injunction.
Tuesday’s hearing was scheduled after civil rights organizations GLAD Law and the National Center for Lesbian Rights earlier asked Reyes for a temporary restraining order against Trump’s executive order.
The executive order gave Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth 60 days to implement changes including a ban on “invented” pronouns. But it did not spell out how, or if, the U.S. military would remove transgender forces since there is no requirement to identify as transgender.
At the hearing, Reyes asked Justice Department lawyer Jean Lin whether the executive order constituted a full ban on transgender people serving in the military. Lin told Reyes she could not say for sure.
The judge also asked Lin whether Trump’s order was demeaning toward transgender people. The judge said courts have ruled that animus toward a particular group was not a rational basis for policy, and noted that Trump before taking office pledged to “stop the transgender lunacy.”
“Saying that all transgender people are unable to be honorable, truthful and disciplined demeans them, yes?” Reyes said.
Lin told Reyes not to consider Trump’s public comments.
The Department of Defense said it does not comment on pending litigation, as a matter of policy.
‘THE SAME AS SAYING SHE CANNOT SERVE AT ALL’
Earlier on Tuesday, the rights groups said the temporary restraining order was needed because military recruiters had halted processing transgender applicants pending Pentagon guidance.
The groups also submitted a personal declaration from Miriam Perelson, a 28-year-old female transgender service member based at Fort Jackson in South Carolina, who alleged she was told she must either be classified as a man or be separated from the military.
Perelson said that over the weekend, she was required to leave the sleeping area for female troops, given a cot in an empty classroom and not allowed to use the female restrooms.
“Requiring Miriam, a transgender woman, to serve as a man is the same as saying she cannot serve at all,” the filing said.
Reyes said she could not take action on Perelson’s situation because she was not a plaintiff in the case. The judge also said she could not order the military to process transgender applicants.
The military has about 1.3 million active-duty personnel, Department of Defense data show. While transgender rights advocates say there are as many as 15,000 transgender service members, officials say the number is in the low thousands.
Trump’s administration has taken aim broadly at transgender rights since taking office. On Wednesday, Trump will sign an executive order effectively banning transgender girls and women from participating in female sports events in schools and colleges, a White House official said.
(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart in Washington and by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Nia Williams and Lisa Shumaker)
