Posted on 08/15/2017 8:10:12 AM PDT by NKP_Vet
(CNN)Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said Monday that the White House had still not provided policy guidance on transgender persons serving in the military, adding that they were still studying the issue, raising the prospect that transgender service members may be allowed to continue to serve despite President Donald Trump's July announcement of a ban via twitter.
"We are going to study the issue," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon.
"The policy is going to address whether or not transgenders can serve under what conditions, what medical support they require, how much time would they be perhaps non-deployable leaving others to pick up their share of everything. There's a host of issues and I'm learning more about this than I ever thought I would and it's obviously very complex to include the privacy issues which we respect," Mattis said.
"I am waiting right now to get the President's guidance in and that I expect to be very soon," he added. Trump announced his plan to ban transgender service members on Twitter last month. The move took the Joint Chiefs of Staff by surprise, and the Pentagon has said it is awaiting an official order from Trump before making a policy change.
The White House has yet to send official guidance to the Pentagon on the ban. Mattis was unwilling to publicly support a 2016 Rand Corp. study commissioned by the Defense Department that put the number of transgender people in the military at between 1,320 and 6,630.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Typical agitprop from CNN.
I know he has his fans here but to me he seems very wobbly. Or maybe it’s just his dentures...
Antidepressants hormones and steroids for all!
And mangina stretching counts as PT!
After all, the Pentagon has promised these members that it will pay for all of their medical whims for life even after they are invalided out.
Trans people are insane. We don’t need insane people in the military.
I still don’t understand why Americans should be left holding the money bag for these people’s surgeries.
I read one interview where they guy said he couldn’t have the surgery because he was no longer allowed to join the military and was counting on the surgery being paid for. Of course, while they are surgically transitioning they cannot be deployed.
If the quotes are true, Mattis has turned out to be a YUGE disappointment.
There is NO PLACE in our Military for people who have personality disorders. It puts at risk all those around the unstable person. NO, TO ‘MAD DOG’ MATTIS!
They could be grandfathered in under prior policy but unfortunately the possibility has been eliminated because “grandfather” is an obsolete reference by their terms.
I am not impressed with Mattis. The man has been a bookish type who kissed ass and played politics. He never saw real combat as a Captain or below nor have any of these idiots Obama appointed. Our military is a damn disgrace full of PC. LGBT social experiments. He planned an OP that bombed a wedding. Real genius.
Insubordination!
The President's guidance is THE MENTALLY ILL HAVE NO PLACE IN OUR MILITARY!
Discharge them NOW!
You want Mattis to lie? He has received no orders. He said, "I am waiting right now to get the President's guidance in and that I expect to be very soon." A Tweet is not an order. It is not guidance from the President. It's a 140 character spleen venting. If the President really wants transgenders out of the military then why is he waiting so long to send formal instructions to the Pentagon? The ball is in the President's court. Until then all Mattis can do is carry on policies as they currently exist.
So maybe the person to be questioning is Trump. What is he waiting for? Why is it taking so long?
Mattis is a soldier. He will comply. Fake News CNN trying to get liberal hopes up.
Pretty much from the beginning.
I doubt Trump has on cabinet member that agrees with him on anything that matters. Tillerson, don't pick on Iran even though they are not keeping the agreement, say they are anyway.
Yes, a misleading headline, but SecDef Mattis should wait until he gets full guidance in writing from President Trump before he makes any changes. I am anxiously awaiting such guidance that will eliminate transgenders, just as other medically unfit are eliminated/prevented from enlisting.
Remember the big controversy in January/February when the hastily written and/or staffed EO came out regarding immigration. I don’t want to see that type of embarrassment repeated here.
I am NOT including as ‘medically unfit’ those who received medical discharges under honorable conditions due to wounds received in combat theaters or injuries during training.
I am ex army.. mangina stretching, ewww thanks.
It seems that the federal bureaucracy is not overly eager to follow the President’s lawful orders and directives. That includes cabinet level folks. Makes one have some doubt even if the military would carry out a nuclear strike against the Norks if so ordered. Seems all of the DC cabal is hedging their bets on Trump staying in office. CYA is an art form in the swamp.
I would like Mattis to relate all of his personal combat experiences in which transgendered individuals were present.
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