A new day, another liberal judge who believes she should have the power of the presidency. A federal judge issued a permanent injunction on Tuesday, blocking the Trump administration from enforcing an executive order that sought to bar transgender individuals from serving openly in the U.S. military. This decision represents a significant legal defeat for the administration’s efforts to impose restrictions on transgender service members.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, appointed by former President Biden, ruled that the policy cannot take effect and ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, along with other military officials, to refrain from implementing it. She also mandated that transgender service members’ status remain unchanged while the case proceeds. However, she temporarily stayed her ruling until Friday to allow the administration time to appeal.
One of the citations the judge used was from the musical “Hamilton,” rather than the Constitution.
BREAKING: 🚨 Radical District Court Judge quotes the musical Hamilton in justifying her ORDER forcing the US military to continue enlisting transgender troops. https://t.co/AbgKDbktuT pic.twitter.com/6Edug9uOeD
— E X X ➠A L E R T S (@ExxAlerts) March 19, 2025
As they do every time they abuse their power, the judge claimed in her opinion that her ruling was a sign of a functioning democracy that she so happened to be valiantly defending, wrote The Associated Press.
“The court knows that this opinion will lead to heated public debate and appeals. In a healthy democracy, both are positive outcomes,” Reyes wrote. “We should all agree, however, that every person who has answered the call to serve deserves our gratitude and respect.”
The judge issued a preliminary injunction requested by attorneys for six transgender people who are active-duty service members and two others seeking to join the military.
In response to the order, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a policy that presumptively disqualifies people with gender dysphoria from military service. Gender dysphoria is the distress that a person feels because their assigned gender and gender identity don’t match. The medical condition has been linked to depression and suicidal thoughts.
In 2016, a Defense Department policy permitted transgender people to serve openly in the military. During Trump’s first term in the White House, the Republican issued a directive to ban transgender service members. The Supreme Court allowed the ban to take effect. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, scrapped it when he took office.
The executive order, titled Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness, was signed on January 27 and quickly faced legal challenges. A group of six active-duty service members and two prospective recruits filed a lawsuit arguing that the policy violates their constitutional rights. Meanwhile, two additional lawsuits contesting the ban are advancing through the courts. The Trump administration defended the order by claiming that permitting transgender individuals to serve openly would compromise military effectiveness, unit cohesion, and overall readiness. The policy argues that transgender individuals cannot meet the military’s rigorous standards and that recognizing their gender identity is incompatible with the discipline expected of service members.
White House advisor laid into the district court judges undermining the president’s power over national security simply because they do not like the president.
WATCH IN FULL: White House Deputy Chief of Staff @StephenM schools Fake News CNN's @kasie on the Constitution, the separation of powers, and the rule of law. pic.twitter.com/2TMnKyBLwk
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 17, 2025
The Trump administration has not yet indicated whether it will seek immediate appellate review, but with additional lawsuits pending in Washington state and New Jersey, the legal battle over transgender military service is far from over.
