7:15
....Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military. Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming.....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
....victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail. Thank you
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
His surprise announcement came after Defense Secretary James Mattis last month delayed the review of an Obama-era policy that allowed openly transgender people to join the military.
Trump's new policy goes further than Mattis' delay in definitively barring transgender people from serving in the military.
\"We refer all questions about the president's statements to the White House,\" Defense Department spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis said in a statement. \"We will continue to work closely with the White House to address the new guidance provided by the commander-in-chief on transgender individuals serving the military. We will provide revised guidance to the department in the near future.\"
He declined to confirm whether Trump consulted Mattis before the announcement.
In June 2016, then–Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that transgender individuals would be able to openly serve in the armed forces. He referred at the time to a Rand study estimate that between 1,320 and 6,630 of the 1.3 million active-duty service members might be transgender.
In a written statement last month, Mattis approved a recommendation to defer the decision to allow transgender individuals to join the military, known as accession.
\"The services will review their accession plans and provide input on the impact to the readiness and lethality of our forces,\" the statement read.
In June of last year, then-candidate Trump tweeted his support for the LGBT community and attacked his opponent Hillary Clinton.
Thank you to the LGBT community! I will fight for you while Hillary brings in more people that will threaten your freedoms and beliefs.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 14, 2016
In October of last year, in an attempt to show support for the LGBT community, Trump held up a rainbow flag given to him by a supporter at a rally in Greeley, Colorado.
Some, including the bipartisan Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, have characterized Trump's announcement this morning as standing in direct contradiction to his previously voiced support for the LGBT community.
Astonishing @realDonaldTrump ever claimed to be \"friend\" to LGBT people. #transgender soldiers deserve thanks, not arbitrary expulsion
— LGBT Caucus (@LGBTEqCaucus) July 26, 2017
ABC News' Meghan Keneally contributed to this report.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect Rand’s estimate of how many active duty service members might be transgender, as referenced by Secretary of Defense Ash Carter on June 30, 2016, in the Pentagon briefing room.
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