One of the oft-unspoken huge problems of this political whiplash - trans people can serve in the military, then they can’t, then they can again, now suddenly they can’t again - is that it severely erodes trust in the government’s institutions and makes them far less appealing as a potential employer to many talented people. Such people desire long-term stability, not upheaval and chaos. Having a mortgage and kids can tend to make you prioritize that. Not just the military, but the NIH, FDA, CDC, any one of numerous parts of gov’t that seek to employ talented scientists and other people. Who will want to work for them in the future when the viability of their position is subject to the political vagaries of the next election, with devastating consequences if the election doesn’t go a certain way?
My son is trans and wants to join the air force. He's smart, and capable, and they would be fortunate to have him. What a loss for the country, what cruelty for only the sake of cruelty - and approval of other cruel people. I'm so angry to see this decent, and brave human being spend a second of his time having to address hatred of his life. I'll stand for trans people until my last breath.
I'm a transgender veteran and strong advocate for trans vets and those serving. I run a subreddit for about 1000 of these people both vets and serving. A common theme runs through them. Hopelessness and desperation that their country has betrayed their benefits and their service. I have literally gave testimony as a veteran to the Missouri House Sub Committee on a recent anti-trans bill and see how these politicians look at us. The Republicans hate us. They staired at me with the most vehemiant hatred that I would come and ruin their narrative. They still passed the bill. I have contacted VSOs, politicians and non-profits. The theme is common. They don't want to stand up for 130,000 trans vets or 15,000 serving because it could affect their votes and money. We are essentially on our own. For the most part, the only people standing up for trans service members past and present is trans service members past and present.
You say 15,000 trans members now serve? Why are they removing 1,000? I’m beginning to wonder if this is yet another made for reality-TV optic (like the deportations and tariffs). To “show” they’ve kept campaign promises yet not moving the needle much. But alas. Instilling fear and chaos and uncertainty along the way. Good for Nick — ignore it for now — put on boots and go to work.
They're removing the 1,000 they fooled into outing themselves and voluntarily resigning for a "buyout," of which there is no guarantee they will get or further mention of.
I’d like to clarify that, while possibly performative, this regime is establishing an authoritarian reign of terror. Nothing to take lightly. I’m certainly keeping a vigilant eye on any more red lines they’re crossing
The trans service member support organization SPARTA estimates it will cost the government 18 billion dollars to replace the time, experience, and holes in the chain command these service members represent.
What bigots like Hegseth fail to recognize is that trans folks HAVE MET all the standards and obstacles for their gender that the military has thrown at them. We have qualified on the rifle and pistol ranges, we have passed our gender physical fitness tests, we have passed the various leadership and academic hurdles. In short, we have proven ourselves in every arena. The military does NOT show favoritism toward any entrant. NONE of us were given a lighter load to carry or a shorter course to run. Another thing the bigots fail to grasp is that we paid attention to all the tactics courses. We learned small unit leadership. In short, we might be forced out of the current military, but we WON'T be crushed by a bigotted society without a fight. We HAVE skills.
He is not failing to recognize these things. He is very intentionally labeling them as not being "honorable" enough to serve to scapegoat them. They provide an easy target for the fascists because the MAGAts are too stupid to understand that they are being manipulated with anti-trans propaganda.
As Nick says in the article, he devoted himself and made sacrifices and now he's being thrown out with only two more years until his retirement. Despicable. Who is it that's being dishonorable here? It's definitely not Nick.
I was laying in bed last night fuming for hours over this. How the DOD could turn around and persecute the very people who have fought and sacrificed to serve it, just because they are trans, and have that persecution defended by the SCOTUS is just disgusting. Like so much of the news lately, it makes me want to vomit. I hope that the plaintiffs ultimately win in court. They deserve better than this s***.
This is an unconscionable kick in the teeth for the service members who have put in the time and done the work and earned the benefits that will be stripped away from them. This regime has been consistent in demeaning and degrading our armed forces, and a SCOTUS that allows this to happen has failed to uphold the Constitution and the laws of our country and should be impeached immediately.
It is such a terrible irony that Hegseth, of all people, dares to claim he is doing anything at all in the name of national security, considering Signalgate and his complete ineptitude. Not to mention the very credible sexual assault allegations against him. I appreciate all hard sacrifices made by all service people and veterans. Thank you.
I retired from the military after 22 years and during that time served with members that were closeted and then later allowed to openly serve. The words of a commentator yesterday echoes my feelings on the topic - I paraphrase them here. I don't care about the sexual orientation or gender of my fellow soldier - we all bleed the same. All I care about is that they hate the enemy as much as I do; that they are proficient in their lethality and tasks; that they are devoted to their comrades in arms; that they they follow the orders of the Command; and, that they respect and defend the Constitution.
This Executive Order of the Trump Administration is a solution in search of a problem and its only purpose is to feed fresh meat to the MAGA core.
Thank you, Nick, for everything you’ve done. There are more of us with you than you can possibly know. Things are likely to get worse before they get better. We will need you then, too, so I wish you the strength to keep putting your boots on. ❤️
This isn’t just being fired due to discrimination. With 18 years of service- it’s taking a veteran’s pension with no valid cause. I think you qualify for a pension at 20 years
Nick is a better man than Pete Hegseth will ever be.
More qualified to serve as Secretary of Defense, too!
I’d say more qualified too..
One of the oft-unspoken huge problems of this political whiplash - trans people can serve in the military, then they can’t, then they can again, now suddenly they can’t again - is that it severely erodes trust in the government’s institutions and makes them far less appealing as a potential employer to many talented people. Such people desire long-term stability, not upheaval and chaos. Having a mortgage and kids can tend to make you prioritize that. Not just the military, but the NIH, FDA, CDC, any one of numerous parts of gov’t that seek to employ talented scientists and other people. Who will want to work for them in the future when the viability of their position is subject to the political vagaries of the next election, with devastating consequences if the election doesn’t go a certain way?
Trump has effectively made it impossible to want a career in government.
My son is trans and wants to join the air force. He's smart, and capable, and they would be fortunate to have him. What a loss for the country, what cruelty for only the sake of cruelty - and approval of other cruel people. I'm so angry to see this decent, and brave human being spend a second of his time having to address hatred of his life. I'll stand for trans people until my last breath.
I'm a transgender veteran and strong advocate for trans vets and those serving. I run a subreddit for about 1000 of these people both vets and serving. A common theme runs through them. Hopelessness and desperation that their country has betrayed their benefits and their service. I have literally gave testimony as a veteran to the Missouri House Sub Committee on a recent anti-trans bill and see how these politicians look at us. The Republicans hate us. They staired at me with the most vehemiant hatred that I would come and ruin their narrative. They still passed the bill. I have contacted VSOs, politicians and non-profits. The theme is common. They don't want to stand up for 130,000 trans vets or 15,000 serving because it could affect their votes and money. We are essentially on our own. For the most part, the only people standing up for trans service members past and present is trans service members past and present.
You say 15,000 trans members now serve? Why are they removing 1,000? I’m beginning to wonder if this is yet another made for reality-TV optic (like the deportations and tariffs). To “show” they’ve kept campaign promises yet not moving the needle much. But alas. Instilling fear and chaos and uncertainty along the way. Good for Nick — ignore it for now — put on boots and go to work.
They're removing the 1,000 they fooled into outing themselves and voluntarily resigning for a "buyout," of which there is no guarantee they will get or further mention of.
Ahhhhhhhh
I’d like to clarify that, while possibly performative, this regime is establishing an authoritarian reign of terror. Nothing to take lightly. I’m certainly keeping a vigilant eye on any more red lines they’re crossing
The trans service member support organization SPARTA estimates it will cost the government 18 billion dollars to replace the time, experience, and holes in the chain command these service members represent.
Yea. That’s why I wonder if the 1,000 they fooled into outing themselves is performative cuz they know removing 15,000 would create havoc
Yes. There is an estimated 15,000.
What bigots like Hegseth fail to recognize is that trans folks HAVE MET all the standards and obstacles for their gender that the military has thrown at them. We have qualified on the rifle and pistol ranges, we have passed our gender physical fitness tests, we have passed the various leadership and academic hurdles. In short, we have proven ourselves in every arena. The military does NOT show favoritism toward any entrant. NONE of us were given a lighter load to carry or a shorter course to run. Another thing the bigots fail to grasp is that we paid attention to all the tactics courses. We learned small unit leadership. In short, we might be forced out of the current military, but we WON'T be crushed by a bigotted society without a fight. We HAVE skills.
He is not failing to recognize these things. He is very intentionally labeling them as not being "honorable" enough to serve to scapegoat them. They provide an easy target for the fascists because the MAGAts are too stupid to understand that they are being manipulated with anti-trans propaganda.
And then they just change the rules anyways because that is what tyrants DO.
As Nick says in the article, he devoted himself and made sacrifices and now he's being thrown out with only two more years until his retirement. Despicable. Who is it that's being dishonorable here? It's definitely not Nick.
I was laying in bed last night fuming for hours over this. How the DOD could turn around and persecute the very people who have fought and sacrificed to serve it, just because they are trans, and have that persecution defended by the SCOTUS is just disgusting. Like so much of the news lately, it makes me want to vomit. I hope that the plaintiffs ultimately win in court. They deserve better than this s***.
This is an unconscionable kick in the teeth for the service members who have put in the time and done the work and earned the benefits that will be stripped away from them. This regime has been consistent in demeaning and degrading our armed forces, and a SCOTUS that allows this to happen has failed to uphold the Constitution and the laws of our country and should be impeached immediately.
It is such a terrible irony that Hegseth, of all people, dares to claim he is doing anything at all in the name of national security, considering Signalgate and his complete ineptitude. Not to mention the very credible sexual assault allegations against him. I appreciate all hard sacrifices made by all service people and veterans. Thank you.
The military will be remade in trumps image- very dangerous for all of us. Keep protesting, be loud, don’t just let them take rights away from anyone!
I retired from the military after 22 years and during that time served with members that were closeted and then later allowed to openly serve. The words of a commentator yesterday echoes my feelings on the topic - I paraphrase them here. I don't care about the sexual orientation or gender of my fellow soldier - we all bleed the same. All I care about is that they hate the enemy as much as I do; that they are proficient in their lethality and tasks; that they are devoted to their comrades in arms; that they they follow the orders of the Command; and, that they respect and defend the Constitution.
This Executive Order of the Trump Administration is a solution in search of a problem and its only purpose is to feed fresh meat to the MAGA core.
Sending all the love to Nick, he doesn’t deserve this.
Thank you, Nick, for everything you’ve done. There are more of us with you than you can possibly know. Things are likely to get worse before they get better. We will need you then, too, so I wish you the strength to keep putting your boots on. ❤️
This isn’t just being fired due to discrimination. With 18 years of service- it’s taking a veteran’s pension with no valid cause. I think you qualify for a pension at 20 years
How do you make that up?
I'm not ok either
What does it mean to serve this country? Some days, I am filled with rage. Other days, I am just so sad for our country and for the rest of the world.