Trump administration asks Supreme Court to allow discharge of transgender troops

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration on Friday (local time) asked the US Supreme Court to intervene and allow the military to discharge about two dozen transgender service members, according to The Washington Post.

The emergency request seeks to lift a lower-court injunction that has kept the troops in service while their lawsuit continues. The request asks the high court to overturn lower-court rulings that have shielded a group of active service members from discharge, setting up a major constitutional test over the administration’s military policies.

The petition marks a major escalation in the legal fight over President Donald Trump’s executive order banning transgender individuals from serving in the armed forces. Lower courts have largely blocked enforcement of the discharges, finding the policy appears driven by prejudice rather than military necessity.

The legal battle stems from an executive order signed shortly after President Donald Trump took office, which banned transgender individuals from serving and described transgender identity as conflicting with military discipline.

Trump wants the Supreme Court to lock in his transgender military ban.

He brought the ban back last year, arguing the military should decide who is fit to serve, and the Supreme Court let him enforce it while the legal fight played out.

But there’s still a catch. 28… pic.twitter.com/Iu54nndL6f

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) August 29, 2026

The Defense Department formally implemented the mandate in February 2025. While an estimated 4,200 openly transgender personnel were serving at the time, many have since left voluntarily, while others have faced mandatory discharge proceedings, reported The New York Times.

In its filing, the Justice Department argued the executive branch has broad authority to set military qualification standards and urged the high court to act before a full trial. Lawyers for the transgender plaintiffs said discharging decorated service members before a final judgment would cause irreparable harm and undermine military readiness.

A group of 28 transgender service members, led by Army Reserve Second Lieutenant Nicolas Talbott, challenged the ban in federal court. In June, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled 2-to-1 in favour of the service members, with the majority finding that the policy appeared to be driven by prejudice against an unpopular group.

However, Solicitor General D John Sauer argued in a Thursday filing that courts must defer to the Defence Department’s judgment regarding military lethality and readiness.

As reported by The New York Times, attorneys representing the service members filed a response on Friday urging the justices to deny the administration’s emergency request and allow the case to proceed to a full trial scheduled for January.

The New York Times noted that the Supreme Court’s conservative majority previously allowed the administration to temporarily enforce discharges in a separate ruling last May. The justices are expected to decide this fall whether to accept the case for full review during their upcoming term starting in October.

If the Supreme Court takes the case, its ruling could decide the constitutionality of Trump’s transgender military ban. (ANI)