Latest news with #transgenderban
Washington Post
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Live Updates: Hegseth to be grilled on Capitol Hill; Trump heading to Fort Bragg
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will face a barrage of questions Tuesday as he appears on Capitol Hill for his first public testimony since his bruising confirmation hearing in January. Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee are expected to press Hegseth on his use of an unclassified messaging app, President Donald Trump's pursuit of a Qatari luxury airliner for use as Air Force One, a ban on transgender service members and a $45 million military parade planned for Saturday, among other topics. Trump, meanwhile, plans to head to Fort Bragg in North Carolina on Tuesday as part of the celebration of the Army's 250th anniversary as he continues to face questions about his deployment of the military to quell protests in Los Angeles. The specter of federally controlled troops in American streets has historically signaled a seismic social crisis, from forcing integration in Arkansas to protecting civil rights marchers in Alabama. But President Donald Trump sent the National Guard to Los Angeles at a time when state and local officials said they had protests there under control. House Democrats will have an opportunity Tuesday to question Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about what they describe as his polarizing stewardship of the Pentagon and the unabating turmoil that has gripped the institution during his brief tenure in charge, a potentially uncomfortable subject he has mostly avoided in public remarks to date. The Smithsonian's Board of Regents said Monday night that 'all personnel decisions' are directed by Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III, 10 days after President Donald Trump claimed that he had fired the director of the institution's National Portrait Gallery. The board, which issued its statement after an all-day meeting Monday, also said that it supported Bunch's 'authority and management' of the Smithsonian. LOS ANGELES — The relationship between the leader of the United States and the country's most populous state reached a near-breaking point Monday, as President Donald Trump said he thought California Gov. Gavin Newsom should be arrested, a claim that Newsom described as an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism. As the two men traded recriminations, Trump stepped up the military's presence on the streets of Los Angeles, against Newsom's will.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Transgender Troops Deserve the Right to Serve
Commander Emily Shilling served nearly 20 years in the U.S. Navy as a combat aviator with over 60 missions. Fighter pilots are very hard for the military to find, nonetheless. Shilling will be removed from service by Donald Trump's Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. So will many others, like former Navy SEAL Kristin Beck, who served 20 years in Naval Special Warfare, including with SEAL Team Six. She earned the Bronze Star with Combat 'V,' the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and the Purple Heart. Shilling and Beck are heroes the military will never get back, and the absence of service members like them will make America less ready, endanger troops, and hurt recruiting efforts. Yet, these folks aren't good enough to serve for Trump, who just banned transgender service members for the second time. His first effort was reversed by Joe Biden; this time, the Supreme Court allowed the ban to take effect as the matter winds its way through the courts. A Trump ally, Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) has introduced legislation to codify Trump's executive order and ensure no Democratic president can undo the damage he has caused. Hegseth's service could never compare to that of Shilling or Beck, even though Hegseth likes to pretend to be a Navy SEAL as he sycophantically follows them around the country during special events. Trump never served a day in his life. That is why it is odd to me and to many others that they are so adamant about preventing transgender troops — and likely, before his term ends, gay Americans — from serving in the armed forces. Trump's disdain and disrespect for veterans will go down in history as reprehensible, as will Moore's, who voted against the bipartisan PACT Act, which expanded health care and benefits to millions of veterans, and numerous other bipartisan veterans' legislation. Transgender Americans have served with honor — from the decks of aircraft carriers to combat zones around the globe. They fly missions, lead teams, and complete the same rigorous training as everyone else in the military. Now, Trump and Hegseth are reportedly planning to direct military commanders to identify troops who are transgender or have gender dysphoria, so they can undergo medical checks and then be purged. This policy is an ethical failure and will be a logistical one, too. Removing thousands of trained service members during a recruiting crisis makes us weaker, not stronger. Forcing out skilled troops, pilots, linguists, mechanics, medics, because they sought medically necessary care or live authentically doesn't protect national security. It undermines it. That is not about readiness. That is about hate. If Trump cared about military readiness, he would invest in veterans' programs and bolster rewards for service — not dismantle the Department of Veterans Affairs, as Elon Musk and his so-called Department of Government Efficiency have done. Many trans service members will now have to closet themselves in fear. They will be forced to self identify promptly. If they haven't figured that out yet, then the rest of their service will be a minefield. Any military leader will tell you that fear is no way to lead, and it reduces readiness and hurts the fighting force. If only Trump, Musk, or Hegseth actually had the military knowledge, or cared about command leadership. If you're wondering what the long-term strategy is, it's simple: drive transgender Americans out of public life, one agency at a time — and purge military leaders so they can't stop it. It starts at the military, it always does with authoritarians. Then health care, education, civil service. The goal is to make trans people invisible. But it will not stop there. Anyone who is different will be erased from the military, just as Hegseth and Trump are erasing the contributions of women, minorities, people of color, and gay Americans from official military history — an area where the Supreme Court and federal law cannot easily intervene. Trump's policies are dangerous, and anyone who supports his whitewashing of our military is complicit. These changes will shrink the number of qualified service members and turn the U.S. military into a place built by and for white men alone, weakening our forces, undermining readiness, and leaving us at a disadvantage. That is exactly the kind of military despots, dictators, and religious extremists would love to see. We cannot wait for the next election to fix this. We need voices inside and outside the military to speak up now and say: enough. We will not purge our military. We will not gender-wash, trans-wash, gay-wash, or whitewash our ranks. We will fight back — with truth, with honor, and with the conviction that our strength comes from our diversity, not in spite of it. More from Rolling Stone Musicians Union Slams Trump's Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen Tantrum Grok Pivots From 'White Genocide' to Being 'Skeptical' About the Holocaust Supreme Court Blocks Trump's Alien Enemies Act Deportations Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
CNN
09-05-2025
- Business
- CNN
Biden reacts to Pope Leo XIV's election
Biden reacts to Pope Leo XIV's election Former President Joe Biden tells CNN's Dana Bash that he's pleased to see Pope Leo XIV making history as the first American pope. 00:32 - Source: CNN First cargo ships facing 145% tariffs arrive in LA Ships now pulling into LA's harbor from China are the first to be subject to massive tariffs. Shipments have dropped by 50%. CNN's Nick Watt is on the ground at the port of Los Angeles. 01:00 - Source: CNN Transgender Navy veteran reacts to military ban A transgender US Navy veteran responds to the Supreme Court's decision that President Trump's ban on transgender troops serving in the military is effective immediately. Abby Phillip and the CNN NewsNight panel react. 01:56 - Source: CNN Trump urges India-Pakistan attacks to 'stop' President Donald Trump emphasized to reporters that the US 'gets along with both countries very well,' when asked about the deadly eruption of fighting between India and Pakistan. 00:27 - Source: CNN Trump and Carney debate tariffs President Donald Trump is hosting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the White House amid historic tensions between both countries. Trump was asked if there is anything Carney can say to change the tariffs placed on Canada. 01:14 - Source: CNN Carney says he asked Trump to stop '51st State' threats Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters following his meeting with President Trump at the White House he asked Trump to stop threatening to annex Canada. During the meeting, Carney told Trump in the Oval Office that Canada 'won't be for sale ever.' 01:04 - Source: CNN Trump supporters on third term Comedians Davram Stiefler and Jason Selvig regularly attend Trump rallies, speaking with the President's supporters for their podcast, 'The Good Liars Tell the Truth.' They tell CNN's Laura Coates there was 'constant forgiveness for anything' that President Trump does, including a possible third term. 01:31 - Source: CNN How businesses are waiting out tariffs With Trump's new tariffs in place on products from countries like China, many businesses are looking at bonded warehouses as a way to legally avoid paying the extra dues, for now. CNN's Julia Vargas Jones explains how they work. 01:01 - Source: CNN Van Jones speaks with Black Trump supporters CNN senior political commentator Van Jones speaks with a group of African Americans in South Carolina who explain why they voted for and continue to back President Donald Trump. 02:44 - Source: CNN Vanessa Yurkevich explains Trump's big move that could raise prices President Trump ended the de minimis exemption, a major shipping loophole that allowed shipments of goods worth $800 or less to come into the United States duty-free, often more or less skipping time-consuming inspections and paperwork. CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich explains what this move will mean for US consumers and prices. 01:01 - Source: CNN How much the Trump family stands to earn from $2B crypto deal CNN's Erin Burnett and chief data analyst Harry Enten look at how much money the Trump family stands to make from a major crypto deal. 01:52 - Source: CNN Fareed's take on Trump's executive order record Fareed Zakaria breaks down President Donald Trump's first 100 days executive order record and compares it to that of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 00:58 - Source: CNN Fighting Trump's transgender military ban Lt. Nic Talbott is a member of the US Army Reserve and the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's ban of transgender people serving in the military. CNN's MJ Lee spoke to Talbott about his military career being in limbo. 02:01 - Source: CNN HHS releases controversial report on transgender children The US Department of Health and Human Services has released a 400-page review of treatment for gender dysphoria in children but did not disclose who authored or reviewed the report. CNN's Ben Hunte explains. 00:57 - Source: CNN Would you date someone with a different political POV? Can you separate the political context from your romantic life? CNN's Audie Cornish speaks with her show crew and with Orna Guralnik, a psychoanalyst and star of Showtime's Couples Therapy. 01:17 - Source: CNN Manu Raju breaks down Senate vote on Trump tariffs CNN's Manu Raju reports on the Senate rejecting a resolution that would have effectively blocked the president's global tariffs by revoking the emergency order Trump is using to enact them. 01:19 - Source: CNN Anderson on the exodus from DOJ's civil rights division CNN's Anderson Cooper examines the fallout of a massive number of workers leaving the Department of Justice civil rights division in the wake of the Trump administration outlining its agenda for the department's priorities. 03:56 - Source: CNN Trump says he won't bring back Abrego Garcia President Donald Trump acknowledged that he could secure the return of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador, but refuses to do so. The comments appear to contradict previous remarks made by him and his top aides who say the US does not have the ability to return Abrego Garcia because he is in the custody of a foreign government, despite the Supreme Court's ruling that the Trump administration must 'facilitate' his return. 00:56 - Source: CNN Republicans share views as Trump's poll numbers sink CNN's Manu Raju asks Republican lawmakers about their thoughts on President Donald Trump's policies amid his sinking poll numbers. 02:05 - Source: CNN Trump details call with Jeff Bezos over tariff charges US President Donald Trump told reporters about his call with Amazon co-founder Jeff Bezos saying he was 'a good guy,' following a spat earlier in the day between the White House and e-commerce giant. Two senior White House officials told CNN that Trump called Bezos to complain about reports that the company was considering displaying the cost of US tariffs on its website, a move that White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called a 'hostile political act.' Amazon spokesperson Tim Doyle said in a statement, 'The team that runs our ultra-low cost Amazon Haul store considered the idea of listing import charges on certain products. This was never approved and is not going to happen.' 00:13 - Source: CNN
