Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez shuts down Republicans shamelessly attacking Joe Biden for killing Trump’s trans military ban
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. (Tom Williams/Getty)
Republicans have predictably begun launching pathetic attacks on Joe Biden for dispensing with Donald Trump’s hated ban on trans people in the military – and Democrats, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, are having none of it.
On Monday (25 January), Joe Biden delivered on his promise to consign the monstrous policy – announced by Trump via tweet in 2017 – to the trash heap of history early in his presidency.
Biden signed an executive order that makes clear people can serve in the military regardless of gender identity, also ordering an immediate review of all cases where the Trump policy led to discrimination against trans service personnel or recruits. Military transcripts of those targeted by the Trump regime will be corrected.
The move was decried by Texas Republican senator John Cornyn, who took to Twitter to vent: “Another ‘unifying’ move by the new administration?”
In fact, polling has consistently showed that Americans overwhelmingly support the right of trans people being able to serve in the military, with 71 per cent of voters, two-thirds of military personnel and half of Republicans backing an end to Trump’s ban.
Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez snapped back: “I dunno, if you’re a politician that thinks ending discrimination is ‘divisive,’ you might not want to publicly advertise that.”
Biden campaign adviser Mike Collier added: “That’s right, senator Cornyn. It is unifying. Thanks for asking. Part of unifying is treating all people with respect, among other things. Including the men and women who serve in the military. You might want to try it.”
US President Joe Biden signs an executive order reversing a Trump era ban on transgender people serving in the military (Getty/JIM WATSON)
George Takei quipped: “My goodness, what’s next? Are they going to let the races intermarry and allow women to open their own bank accounts?”
Trump ally compares trans inclusion to strike by a warship.
Cornyn was not the only right-wing figure to lay into Biden for ending the discriminatory policy, with former Trump ally Tony Perkins departing from this plane of reality entirely to compare allowing trans people in the military to a targeted strike from a warship.
The head of the anti-LGBT+ Family Research Council raged: “In places like the military, a radical makeover is guaranteeing that the men and women who do have jobs will be too busy embracing political correctness to execute them.
“After Donald Trump spent four years rebuilding our troops, Joe Biden threw the military back into turmoil by upending the ban on transgender service.”
Perkins repeated the laughable claim that ending the ban “could cost taxpayers up to $3.7 billion over the next 10 years for medical costs and lost deployment time – more than enough to buy a Navy destroyer”.
He added: “Like a destroyer, this decision is equally capable of sinking our military’s mission.”
