Trump rescinds Biden’s executive order allowing transgender soldiers in an effort to eliminate DEI from the military

President Donald Trump has rescinded a Biden-era executive order allowing transgender people to serve in the military.

After taking the oath of office on Monday, the new president signed an order revoking former President Joe Biden’s order known as Allowing All Eligible Americans to Serve Their Country in Uniform, which was signed in 2021.

On the campaign trail, Trump promised to roll back the ban on transgender soldiers he put in place during his first term. In his inauguration speech, he said that he will officially recognize that there are only two genders: male and female.

There are an estimated 9,000 to 14,000 transgender service members.

The new executive order was part of a rapid succession of steps Trump has taken to reverse Biden’s policies. In a statement, the White House called the federal government’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs “derailed by replacing hard work, equity, and equality with a divisive and dangerous regime.”

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The move comes as part of a campaign by Trump and his Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth to eliminate any DEI practices across the US military.

Last week, Trump tapped Matthew Lohmeier to be the next Air Force secretary. In 2021, Lohmeier, the Space Force, a lieutenant colonel, was fired after announcing various military programs and accusing “Marxism” among its ranks.

Lohmeier has self-published the book, “The Unstoppable Revolution: Marxism’s Mission for Victory and the Making of the American Military” and has appeared on podcasts arguing that the military is being weakened by Marxism, diversity efforts and critical race theory.

President Donald Trump has promised on the campaign trail to reinstate the ban on transgender soldiers he put in place during his first term. (Photo by Hedil Amir/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, praised the move, “already putting our military’s focus back on killing people by ending the DEI’s wake-up programs.”

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Monday’s actions are part of a broader Republican campaign against transgenderism within the military. GOP lawmakers successfully inserted an amendment into their 2025 defense policy bill that bans care for transgender children from the military health care system.

The move comes as part of a campaign by President Donald Trump and his Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth to end all DEI practices in the US military. (AP)

An order requiring the federal government to recognize only two genders has banned the use of taxpayer money for “transgender services” following reports that some inmates were receiving state-sponsored transgender care. Medicaid, in some states, currently covers such treatment.

Also, under that order, state prisons and shelters for immigrants and rape victims must be segregated by gender. It will prevent requirements in government agencies and workplaces for transgender people to be referred to using gender-appropriate pronouns. Trump’s team says those requirements violate the First Amendment’s freedom of speech and religion.

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The order does not mandate nationwide where transgender people can use restrooms or any sporting events they participate in, although many states have passed laws in those areas.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.