Twenty-four Republicans joined all Democrats in voting to keep Barack Obama’s pro-trans policy in the military.
Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo., succeeded in forcing a vote, arguing that Obama’s “transgender decision is costly in dollars and short on common sense.” The attempted rollback failed on a 209-214 vote, however, as 24 Republicans joined a unanimous Democratic caucus in opposing the proposal.
“The Obama transgender policy, which was implemented without input from members of Congress, is ill-conceived and contrary to our goals of increasing troop readiness and investing defense dollars into addressing budget shortfalls of the past,” Hartzler said in June. “By recruiting and allowing transgender individuals to serve in our military we are subjecting taxpayers to high medical costs including up to $130,000 per transition surgery, lifetime hormone treatments, and additional surgeries to address the high percentage of individuals who experience complications.”
Photo credit: Shutterstock