Trump's Trials - SCOTUS keeps transgender military ban in place while appeals continue

Episode Date: May 7, 2025

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed the Trump administration to begin executing its ban on transgender military service members, at least for now. The justices blocked a lower court order that temporarily halted the ban's enforcement. NPR's Nina Totenberg reports. Support NPR and hear every episode of Trump's Terms sponsor-free with NPR+. Sign up at plus.npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

You're listening to Trump's Terms from NPR. I'm Scott Detro. We're going to be doing all sorts of things nobody ever thought was even possible. President Trump has brought back strength to the White House. We can't just ignore the president's desires. This will be an entirely different country in a short period of time. Every episode of Trump's Terms, we bring you NPR's latest coverage of the 47th president, with a focus on actions and policies he is pursuing on his own terms and in the process, taking the presidency into uncharted territory.

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hour on the NPR News Now podcast, we take the latest most important stories happening and we package them into five-minute episodes so you can easily squeeze them in between meetings and on your way to that thing. Listen to the NPR News Now podcast now. I'm Ari Shapiro in Washington, where the US Supreme Court today allowed the Trump administration to begin carrying out its ban on transgender military service members, at least for now. To explain NPR Legal Affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg is here in the studio. Hi Nina.

Hi there, Ari. President Trump has been trying to ban transgender troops in the military since his first term in office. What's the difference between then and now? Well, in the first term, he partially succeeded, but the ban was reversed by President Biden, only to be put back in place by Trump after he took office for a second term. This new order mimics the Trump order from the first administration, and it appears to strengthen it as well, because it bars transgender individuals from enlisting, and it also allows for the discharging of active duty transgender service members as well.

So what did the Supreme Court do today? In a one-paragraph unsigned order, the justices revived the ban, which had been temporarily blocked by the lower courts. The courts' three liberals, Justices Kagan, Sotomayor, and Jackson, noted their dissents and would have barred the administration from putting the ban in place while the case continues to be litigated in the lower courts. And so the case now goes back to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for the Trump policy to be reviewed.

There's been so much legal ping-ponging in this case, going as far back as 2016 when the Obama administration first allowed openly trans individuals to serve in the military. Explain how this current policy is different. The Obama policy was reversed by Trump in 2017, followed by new rules issued by then Defense Secretary James Mattis. The Mattis rules actually allowed exceptions to the ban for active service members previously diagnosed with gender dysphoria.

But the new policy, the Trump 2 policy, is significantly tougher because it bars from the military. Anyone with gender dysphoria, a diagnosis of gender dysphoria, and that would be basically all transgender individuals. So where does this leave us now? The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will take a whack at deciding the issue. And that decision can be appealed to the Supreme Court, though the ban is likely to remain in place

during the appellate process. And so assuming that this case ultimately does reach the Supreme Court again later, what are the chances that the justices will ultimately rule against the Trump transgender ban in the military? Probably slim to none. The fact that is that the Supreme Court even on a temporary basis has allowed the Trump administration to proceed with carrying

out the ban and that's a pretty strong indicator that the administration is very likely to prevail in the long run. How many transgender individuals are in the military right now under the policy that allowed them to enlist and serve. The Obama policy was reversed by Trump in 2017, followed by new rules issued by then Defense Secretary James Mattis. The Mattis rules allowed exceptions to the ban for active service members previously diagnosed

with gender dysphoria. But the new policy, the Trump Two policy, is significantly tougher because it bars from the military anyone with a gender dysphoria diagnosis. And while that might not be everyone, it's most trans individuals. And what can you tell us about the plaintiffs behind this challenge? The challenge to the ban was brought by a group of current and aspiring transgender service members, including lead plaintiff Emily Schilling, a Navy pilot who's flown more than 60 combat missions over her nearly two decades of military service. Ruling in their favor, Judge Benjamin Settle in Washington State, who was a George W. Bush

appointee, concluded that the government's classification of gender dysphoria as a disqualifying medical condition was essentially a ruse motivated by hostility towards transgender people. We've described how long a legal journey this has been. When do you expect it might finally conclude? Well, I would think that the case will be back at the Supreme Court next term for a final ruling, regardless of who wins in the Ninth Circuit. That is NPR Legal Affairs correspondent, Nina Totenberg.

Thank you, Nina. Thank you, Ari. Before we wrap up, a reminder, you can find more coverage of the Trump administration on the NPR Politics Podcast, where you can hear NPR's political reporters break down the day's biggest political news, with new episodes every weekday afternoon. And thanks as always to our NPR Plus supporters who hear every episode of the show without sponsor messages. You can learn more at plus.npr.org. I'm Scott Detro, thanks for listening to Trump's Terms from NPR. Are you like me? Do you love picking the best and worst looks on the red carpet?

Well, for the first time ever, The Met is dedicating their annual gala to the history of black fashion. So from where I'm sitting, the looks could be really good or not. I mean, will someone wear a durag when they shouldn't? Let's get into the backstory of black fashion and rate the best and worst looks together. This week on the It's Been a Minute podcast from NPR. On the indicator from Planet Money podcast, we're here to help you make sense of the economic news from Trump's tariffs. It's called in game theory a trigger strategy or sometimes called grim trigger, which sort of has a cowboy-esque ring to it.

To what exactly a sovereign wealth fund is. For insight every weekday, listen to NPR's The Indicator from Planet Money.