Retired generals, admirals thank Trump for announcing ban on transgender troopsWashington Times, Aug 1, 2017, Rowan Scarborough
More than a dozen retired generals and admirals have signed a letter to President Trump thanking him for his announced policy to ban transgender people from the armed forces.
“We write today to express our gratitude to you for making the extremely courageous decision to reverse President Obama’s transgender social experiment,” the conservative retired flag officers wrote. “There may be an enormous amount of vitriol directed at you for making this policy correction, but please know that overturning this policy may have done more in the long-term to save the culture and war-fighting capacity of the U.S. military than perhaps any other military policy you will adopt as president.”
The letter came as the Palm Center, a research nonprofit that promotes the LGBT agenda, released a competing statement from 56 retired admirals and generals who say reimposing the ban will hurt readiness, not help it.
“The Commander in Chief has tweeted a total ban of honorably serving transgender troops,” the statement said. “This proposed ban, if implemented, would cause significant disruptions, deprive the military of mission-critical talent, and compromise the integrity of transgender troops who would be forced to live a lie, as well as non-transgender peers who would be forced to choose between reporting their comrades or disobeying policy.”
Among the statement’s signatories: retired Marine Gen. John Allen, former deputy commander of U.S. Central Command; retired Vice Adm. Donald Arthur, former surgeon general of the Navy; and retired Lt. Gen. Claudia Kennedy, the first woman to achieve three-star rank in the Army.
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Other signers: retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney, a Fox News analyst; retired Army Maj. Gen. Gary L. Harrell, a former Delta Force commander; retired Army Maj. Gen. Paul E. Vallely, a conservative activist; retired Army Lt. Gen. Benjamin R. Mixon, who headed Army Pacific Command; and retired Coast Guard Vice Adm. Dean Lee.
While on active duty in 2010, Gen. Mixon sent a letter to Stars and Stripes newspaper opposing Mr. Obama’s plans to end the military ban on open gays.
“Thank you for your focus on preserving the military effectiveness, morale and social cohesion of the United States Armed Forces,” the group wrote.
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