Trump's military transgender ban is unfair but correct
When it comes to LGBT politics it is sexuality first, country second. It is just the opposite when you are POTUS.
"There is always inequity in life," President John F. Kennedy said in a 1962 news conference. "It's very hard in military or personal life to assure complete equality. Life is unfair."
Almost six decades later, President Trump made the unfair but correct decision to refuse applications of transgender individuals from the military. He tweeted that "our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail."
How is Trump wrong? Unlike being lesbian, gay or bisexual, transgender individuals face a whole array of social and logistical hurdles.
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The plight of the transgender people, though very real, is extremely fluid. Some in the transgender communities are still struggling with their own identities. Look at Harvard swimmer Schuyler Bailar.
Last year, CBS' 60 Minutes did a segment detailing Bailar's struggle. Bailar won a scholarship to Harvard's female swim team but identifies as male. During the interview, Bailar — who had top surgery removing his breasts — was asked whether he would forgo the ability to have children. Bailar would not rule out childbirth. Thus, Bailar wants the world to accept him as male, but does not want to surrender his female identity.
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Military is trending regional and 'all in the family.' We need more diversity.
This is not a dig at Bailar, as he should be applauded for his courage, but merely an example of the many issues presented by transgenderism. These issues are emotional and difficult to solve, thus making the U.S. military an improper forum for their exploration. With North Korea, Syria and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria posing serious threats, the U.S. military needs to be focused on defeating these enemies and not locker rooms, restrooms and reassignment surgeries.
Opposition to Trump's decision centers around fairness. In a culture conditioned by political correctness, it seems unfair to single out transgender servicemembers just because of who they are. And frankly, the argument is correct; it is unfair.
As JFK noted, however, the military (like life) is never fair. It is the nature of the beast. The military is about success and preparedness; it is about national security and uniformity. The idea that the military can be part of a grand egalitarian utopia is not only pie-in-the-sky, it is a dangerous proposition that does little to keep America safe.
Trump foes, especially on the LGBT left, are unwilling to even consider Trump's reasoning. On the website for the Human Rights Campaign, a leading LGBT rights group, it read: "Trump launches all-out assault on servicemembers." HRC President Chad Griffin said the president has "put a target on the backs" of transgender active duty personnel.
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Such violent metaphors are inaccurate. They are also dangerous in light of what happened last month at a congressional baseball practice, when James Hodgkinson put actual targets on the backs of GOP lawmakers.
Griffin also said Trump was trying to "drag LGBTQ people back into the closet." Was President Obama trying to drag gays back into the closet when he campaigned against marriage equality in 2008? Was President Clinton putting a padlock on the closet when he instituted "don't ask, don't tell" for the U.S. military?
Trump was the first U.S. president to enter 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. supporting marriage equality. When Hillary Clinton was backing her husband's decision to sign the Defense of Marriage Act that limited gay rights, Trump was an LGBT trailblazer in opening his Mar-a-Lago club to gay couples.
It is shortsighted to call Trump anti-LGBT. Supporting LGBT rights does not mean that you have to be an LGBT Santa Claus who continually stuffs the stockings and leaves presents under the tree. Trump has to make decisions for the nation, not one group, and sometimes that means you don't get what you want.
When it comes to LGBT politics it is sexuality first, country second. It is just the opposite when you are POTUS. Trump's decision may be unfair, but it was not incorrect.
Joseph R. Murray II is a lawyer, conservative commentator and former campaign aide to Pat Buchanan. His book, Odd Man Out, is about his life as a married gay man in the Christian right.
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