A coalition of 14 U.S. Senate Democrats is demanding answers from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth amid growing concerns that the Department of Defense is ignoring federal court orders halting the Trump administration’s ban on transgender military service.
In a sharply worded Tuesday letter, the senators pressed Hegseth to explain whether the Pentagon has discharged any transgender troops in violation of nationwide injunctions issued in March. Those rulings—by U.S. District Judges Ana Reyes and Benjamin Hale Settle—blocked enforcement of Executive Order 14183, which mandates the separation of transgender service members and bans them from acknowledging their identities.
“These injunctions were timely,” the senators wrote, noting the DOD’s plan to implement the ban just days later. “Several military experts and former leaders characterized this rapid timeframe as ‘rushed,’ ‘alarming,’ and ‘brutal.’”
The letter calls on Hegseth to disclose how many trans troops have been affected, how much taxpayer money has been spent defending the policy, and what steps—if any—the Pentagon has taken to reintegrate service members harmed by the administration’s actions. It also emphasizes the disproportionate service of transgender Americans: Nearly 20 percent are veterans or current military, compared with 7 percent of the general U.S. population.
“In return for this patriotism,” the senators wrote, “the administration denies transgender servicemembers not only the ability to serve, but also the resulting benefits they have earned.”
The letter follows a tense appellate hearing in Talbott v. United States, where the D.C. Circuit grilled the DOJ’s defense of the policy. Judges questioned whether the administration’s rationale—deployability and “unit cohesion”—held up under scrutiny. “Your argument is that you can serve as a transgender person as long as you don’t serve as a transgender person,” Judge Cornelia Pillard said, summing up the internal contradiction.
Meanwhile, Hegseth continues to undercut his department’s legal claims. In a recent post on X, formerly Twitter, he declared, “Your agenda is illegals, trans & DEI—all of which are no longer allowed @ DoD.”
“Fox News television personalities—not military units—are the ones bothered by transgender people faithfully serving their country,” the senators wrote, nodding to Hegseth’s former role as a cable news contributor.
Sens. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, and Ron Wyden of Oregon are among the signers.