Judicial Rebuke: Ninth Circuit Denies Trump’s Military Transgender Ban Stay
On a rather eventful Friday evening, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, featuring an ensemble cast of judges appointed by Democratic presidents, has dismissed the Trump Administration’s request for a stay on its injunction regarding the ban on transgender service members in the military.
The decision was rendered by a trio of judges: Wallace Tashima (nominated by Clinton), John Owens (nominated by Obama), and Roopali Desai (nominated by Biden), who collectively opted to keep intact the existing court order that prevents the Trump Administration from expelling transgender individuals from military service.
Ninth Circuit panel (Clinton, Obama, Biden) denies Trump Administration stay of injunction re transgender military members. In other words, court’s order that Trump can’t kick out/keep out trans remains in force & trans remain in military. pic.twitter.com/ABSVx5kPaI
— Margot Cleveland (@ProfMJCleveland) April 18, 2025
In a bid to reshape military policy, President Trump issued two executive orders in January: the “Restoring America’s Fighting Force” and the “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness.” These directives aimed to eliminate any preferences based on race or sex within the military and to eradicate what the administration termed “gender insanity” and “made-up pronouns.”
However, US District Judge Benjamin Hale Settle, appointed by George W. Bush, issued a nationwide preliminary injunction last month, arguing that the rationale provided by the Trump Department of Justice (DOJ) lacked persuasiveness.
Following this, the Trump DOJ sought to appeal the ruling, but the DC Circuit Court also declined the administration’s request to suspend Judge Settle’s injunction, stating, “Appellants have not demonstrated that they will suffer irreparable harm absent a stay.”
It’s worth noting that just last month, the same three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit had previously denied a request from the Trump DOJ for an administrative stay.
JUST IN: The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has *denied* the Trump administration’s request to allow immediate removal of transgender troops from the military. pic.twitter.com/28lKq9oPRK
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 31, 2025
Moreover, Judge Ana Reyes, a Biden appointee originally from Uruguay, had previously issued a temporary nationwide injunction that also blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to impose a ban on transgender individuals in the military.
