A United States court of appeals has ruled that a policy under President Donald Trump to expel transgender troops from the military was a violation of the Constitution.But Monday’s decision was a split one among the three-judge panel of the US appeals court for the District of Columbia.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listOne judge, Robert Wilkins, an appointee of former Democratic President Barack Obama, upheld a lower court ruling rejecting the Trump administration’s policy as it pertains to already enlisted service members.A second judge – Judith Rogers, who was picked by former Democratic President Bill Clinton – agreed with his opinion, but only in part. She felt it should extend to those who seek to enlist, too.And the third judge, Trump pick Justin Walker, issued a dissent questioning the court’s ability to second-guess US military policy.Writing for the fractured majority, Wilkins wrote that Trump’s policy violates the “constitutional right to equal protection of the law”.Origins of Trump’s policyThe case focused on one of the earliest actions Trump took during his second term in office. On January 27, 2025, a week after his second inauguration, Trump issued an executive order called “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness”.In it, he denounced the US armed forces as having been infiltrated with “radical gender ideology”. He proceeded to describe transgender people as unfit for service for embracing a “false ‘gender identity’”.“A man’s assertion that he is a woman, and his requirement that others honor this falsehood, is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member,” Trump wrote. Advertisement The executive order beca …
