US President Donald Trump has vowed to sign an executive order ridding the US military of what he called “transgender ideology” in a potentially major setback for LGBTQ rights.
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He also said he would sign an executive order to start building an “Iron Dome” air defence system for the United States, like the one that Israel has used to intercept thousands of rockets.
“To ensure that we have the most lethal fighting force in the world, we will get transgender ideology the hell out of our military,” Trump told a Republican congressional retreat in Miami on Monday, listing it as one of “four new executive orders” he will sign related to the armed forces.
Transgender Americans have faced a roller coaster of changing policies on military service in recent years, with Democratic administrations seeking to permit them to serve openly while Trump has repeatedly sought to keep them out of the ranks.
The US military lifted a ban on transgender troops serving in the armed forces in 2016, during Democrat Barack Obama’s second term as president.
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