Athree-judge federal appellate panel delivered a sharp rebuke Tuesday to a Biden-appointed district judge while reinstating the Pentagon's authority to exclude transgender individuals from armed service. The DC Circuit Court of Appeals condemned Judge Ana Reyes for insufficient deference to military leadership, voting 2-1 to suspend her preliminary injunction that had blocked Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and the Trump administration from enforcing the reinstated ban. Judge Gregory G. Katsas, writing for the majority alongside Judge Neomi Rao—both Trump appointees—emphasized that for generations, medical standards have disqualified those with gender dysphoria from military duty, citing concerns over combat preparedness, unit solidarity, and fiscal responsibility.
The controversy erupted after President Donald Trump issued January executive orders directing elimination of identity-based preferences and comprehensive reviews of pronoun policies within defense operations. Hegseth mocked Reyes on social media in March, sarcastically suggesting she train special forces units if she intended to override Pentagon judgment. The Supreme Court in May permitted enforcement during ongoing litigation, while separately this week vacating a 2nd Circuit ruling on New York's vaccine mandate, ordering reconsideration of Amish families' religious liberty claims—signaling heightened judicial scrutiny of parental rights nationwide.
DC Circuit restores military authority on gender dysphoria policy while criticizing lower court's intervention in Defense Department decisions
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