Washington, D.C. - March 28, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (DE-AL) issued the following statement voting protect transgender members of our armed forces.
“No one with the strength and determination to serve in our military should ever be turned away because of who they are. Transgender service members serve with distinction and are prepared to make the sacrifice to our nation. The Trump Administration’s ban on transgender individuals serving in uniform is misguided, discriminatory, and contrary to our values. Despite their honorable commitment, this ban demeans their service and must be ended,” said Congresswoman Blunt Rochester. “By voting to end this ban, we met prejudice with love and intolerance with support. Today, we took an important step forward in fighting for equality, protecting the dignity of our military, and affirming the values that our country stands for.”
Washington, D.C. - January 22, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that it will allow the Trump administration’s transgender military policy to go into effect while litigation continues.
Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, a Marine veteran, released the following statement:
“It’s refreshing to see the U.S. Supreme Court rein in lower court judges who are bent on telling the commander-in-chief how to run the military. Those charged with the difficult and complex work of keeping our nation safe cannot do their job with rogue judges injecting their personal opinions into every social issues case which reaches their courts. With different judges issuing these different opinions all over the country, our nation will quickly become paralyzed. There is a reason the Constitution so clearly explains that the president is the final authority on military policy. The Constitution grants judges no power to divert military resources away from preparing to fight wars and into social engineering.
“There are literally hundreds of conditions or physical limitations disqualifying people from military service. Does that make the military exclusionary? Yes. But the Pentagon isn't in the business of equality. It's in the business of fighting and winning wars. Either the military's priority is protecting America -- or it's helping people on the path to self-actualization. It can't do both.
“The U.S. Supreme Court is right to leave the responsibility for keeping our military strong and country safe where it belongs: with our commander-in-chief,” concluded Perkins.
Washington, D.C. - November 1, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Family Research Council criticized the injunction by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly that blocks enforcement of parts of President Trump’s transgender military policy.
Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, a Marine veteran, released the following statement:
“This is where judicial activism is leading us. The courts have moved beyond legislating on the invented rights of abortion and same-sex marriage to clearly usurping the constitutional authority of the executive branch. The president has the primary task of protecting Americans but we see the courts weakening his immigration policies designed to protect America from threats and now telling the commander-in-chief how to run the military,” concluded Perkins.
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Washington, D.C. - October 31, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- In yet another blow to the Trump administration’s campaign of discrimination against transgender Americans, a federal court today temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s dangerous and disrespectful Twitter-based ban on transgender military service members.
The ruling in Doe v. Trump concluded that the ban appeared to be based on little more than prejudice, saying that “there is absolutely no support for the claim that the ongoing service of transgender people would have any negative effective on the military at all,” and that “there is considerable evidence that it is the discharge and banning of such individuals that would have such effects.” The ruling also followed other recent court decisions in recognizing that government discrimination against transgender people is subject to heightened scrutiny by courts.
NCTE recently led a coalition of transgender organizations from around the country in filing an amicus brief in the case, arguing that the military ban is part of a wider pattern of discrimination against transgender people by the Trump administration.
NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling issued the following statement:
Again and again, our courts have been forced to step in and halt this administration’s unconstitutional and dangerous bigotry. As today’s ruling makes clear, this ban was never about military readiness—just like President Trump’s Muslim bans have never been about national security. This ban is about discrimination, plain and simple. We are grateful that the plaintiffs and thousands of other troops will be able to continue serving without the threat of discharge while this case proceeds. Unfortunately, this ruling is not the end of the story, and these troops and their units will still face uncertainty unless Congress acts to end this ban for good.
Lawmakers in both major parties have denounced the ban, and bipartisan bills have been introduced in the House and Senate to end it. Though backed by both the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senate leaders blocked a vote to add a measure that would have ended the ban to the pending national defense authorization bill.
Washington, D.C. - October 18, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- The Trump Administration has moved to have one of four different lawsuits dismissed so far. ABC has reported that the "DOJ argues that because the policy has not been fully implemented and none of the plaintiffs 'face a current or imminent threat of injury during the interim period while the policy is being studied,' it should be dismissed."
The National Center for Transgender Equality and seven other transgender advocacy organizations have filed an amicus brief in a lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender service members.
Under the policy tweeted by President Trump in July and formalized in August, the Pentagon must develop a plan to begin purging transgender service members from the military by March 2018. The eight plaintiffs of Doe v. Trump allege that the ban violates their constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process.
NCTE argues in the brief that President Trump’s ban is the result of anti-transgender animus. Rather than being based on facts and legitimate government interests, the ban serves only to harm and disparage a vulnerable population for no reason other than who they are. The brief demonstrates that this attack on transgender people is part of a clear pattern of hostility and discrimination by the Trump administration, which has gone out of its way to dismantle civil rights protections for transgender people and promote anti-transgender bias and misinformation.
NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling issued the following statement:
NCTE is proud to support the plaintiffs in this case. They represent thousands of qualified service members who are set to be purged from the military simply because of who they are. President Trump’s efforts to ban transgender people from serving in the military serves no legitimate purpose. Unfortunately, this is what we have come to expect from the Discrimination Administration. The President’s decision must not stand.
Related News: Transgender military personnel sue Trump over service ban Reuters
Five transgender members of the U.S. military including Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans sued President Donald Trump on Wednesday, challenging his ban on transgender people serving in the armed forces. Read more...
Ernst on RFS Renewable Volume Obligations for 2018 and 2019 Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA)
July 5, 2017
U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA), a member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, released the following statement after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released their proposed Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) renewable volume obligations (RVOs) for 2018 at 15 billion gallons of conventional ethanol, meeting the levels Congress prescribed in 2007, along with setting the 2019 RVOs for biodiesel at 2.1 billion gallons: Read more...
Feinstein: Republican Health Care Bill Increases Costs Senator Dianne Feinstein - (D - CA)
July 5, 2017
“Under the Senate Republican health care bill, between 3 million and 4 million Californians would have their health coverage taken away. Those Californians who are able to keep their coverage would end up paying much more for less health care. Read more...
Fischer Statement on North Korea Missile Test-Launch Senator Deb Fischer- (R - NE)
July 5, 2017
“The latest test-launch demonstrates a sobering reality: the threat of North Korea is quickly advancing. As the threat increases, we must bring greater pressure to bear on North Korea, and its international patrons, China and Russia, but we should have no illusions that they will solve this problem for us. Read more...
Sen. Franken Announces Bill to Prevent Children from Becoming Trapped in Hot Cars Senator Al Franken - (D - MN)
July 5, 2017
Tragically, an average of 37 children die each year in overheated cars, and more than 700 have died nationwide since 1998. The Helping Overcome Trauma for Children Alone in Rear Seat Act (HOT CARS Act) would seek to save the lives of children before they become trapped in a hot car. The bill would require newly manufactured cars to come equipped with technology to alert drivers if a child is left in the back seat once the car is turned off. Such technology exists and is available in some vehicles-including many of GM's 2017 and 2018 models-but has not yet been implemented on a larger scale. Read more...
Michigan college stops T-Rex-clad student from speaking, acts as if free speech is extinct Alliance Defending Freedom
July 5, 2017
In April, campus police approached three members of the Turning Point USA chapter at the college who were on a large open area of the MCC Clinton Township campus to raise awareness about the value fossil fuels provide to society. The police told the students, one of whom was wearing T-Rex dinosaur costume, that they could not talk to other students, offer educational literature, or collect signatures in support of the issue. They further warned the students that they were violating the college’s speech permit policies because they had not obtained pre-approval from an administrator on a different campus, and that they could be deemed to be trespassing if they did not immediately cease their activities. Read more...
American Family Association Urges Congress to end military transgender policy American Family Association
July 5, 2017
Next week Congress will be voting on a military funding bill known as the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2018 (NDAA). Congress will then have an opportunity to put an end to the Obama administration's transgender military mandate. Read more...
AJC: United Church of Christ Continues Demonization of IsraelAJC: UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST CONTINUES DEMONIZATION OF ISRAEL American Jewish Committee
July 3, 2017
AJC denounced the United Church of Christ (UCC) for adopting a resolution that criticizes Israel but ignores Palestinian leadership responsibility for the human rights of Palestinian children. The resolution, “A Call for the United Church of Christ to Advocate for the Rights of Children Living Under Israeli Military Occupation,” passed at the UCC General Synod by a vote of 79 percent in favor, 13 percent against, and 9 percent abstaining. Read more...
Lawsuit Accuses Los Angeles County Jail of Federal and State Civil Liberty Violations Human Rights Defense Center
July 5, 2017
A national human rights organization is accusing the Los Angeles County Jail of federal and state civil liberty violations. The jail holds the largest number of pre-trial detainees in the United States, and was previously the target of a federal investigation that resulted in the conviction of the former sheriff and jail officials. Read more...
