Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) said on Wednesday that President Trump’s decision to reinstate the military’s ban on transgender service members “probably deserves more than a Twitter conversation.”
“The Pentagon, the secretary of Defense, postponed some decision on this two or three weeks — a couple of weeks ago,” Blunt said on the “Mark Reardon Show” on KMOX in St. Louis.
“I don’t know what their current view is. It would matter to me what their current view is, and it probably deserves more than a Twitter conversation,” he added, a nod to Trump making the policy announcement in a tweet.
The interview was first reported by CNN’s “K-File.”
{mosads}Trump announced the decision to reinstate the ban on Twitter Wednesday morning, saying that allowing transgender people to serve would distract other service members and shake the military’s focus on “overwhelming victory.”
The Obama administration announced last year that it would allow transgender people to serve openly in the military. Trump’s decision would effectively undo that, though it is unclear how the ban will be implemented and what it means to currently serving members of the military.
The president’s policy announcement drew criticism from numerous Republican lawmakers on Wednesday. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, slammed Trump’s decision to announce the policy change on Twitter.
McCain also said he believes “there is no reason to force service members who are able to fight, train and deploy to leave the military — regardless of their gender identity.”
“We should all be guided by the principle that any American who wants to serve our country and is able to meet the standards should have the opportunity to do so — and should be treated as the patriots they are,” he said.