Military Review Boards Resist Trump’s Trans Troop Orders

WHO:

Alternet - President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued orders concerning transgender service members.

Alternet - Military review boards at bases around the globe consisted of uniformed service members; the article says boards in the Navy and Marines approved transgender members to remain in service.

Alternet - Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) was targeted by the Defense Department in an effort to reduce his pension.

Alternet - Former Air Force lawyer Rachel VanLandingham, now a teacher at Southwestern Law School, said boards were refusing to rubber-stamp the administration’s process.

Alternet - A Marine staff sergeant and an Army service member won approval to remain; the article also describes a woman who had served for 18 years and was dismissed.

Alternet - The article says former military and intelligence members serving in elected office filmed a video about refusing unlawful orders.

WHAT:

Alternet - Nine of 12 transgender service members brought before the described boards were approved to stay.

Alternet - The Pentagon kept the proceedings secret, barred spouses from attending, and did not disclose the total number of hearings or dismissals.

Alternet - The Air Force was discharging transgender personnel quickly, unlike the reported board outcomes in the Navy and Marines.

Alternet - The article quotes the Uniform Code of Military Justice as providing military members a legal right and obligation to refuse unlawful orders.

Alternet - Trump called the lawmakers’ video “sedition” and demanded they be “put on trial.”

Alternet - The article says hundreds of qualified service members—including doctors, lawyers, pilots, and nuclear technicians—left, while some who challenged dismissal waited in limbo for more than a year.

WHERE:

Alternet - The Pentagon established review boards at military bases around the globe.

WHY:

Alternet - The administration said transgender troops, estimated at about 4,250 people or 0.1 percent of the military, were a costly burden on military effectiveness.

Alternet - VanLandingham said board members considered the process unjust and were refusing to approve dismissals automatically.

HOW:

Alternet - Boards reviewed individual transgender service members’ cases. The article says the Pentagon’s orders were narrowly framed to encourage dismissal, but some panels voted to retain members.

Alternet - In one described hearing, a character witness for a woman with 18 years of service was cut off, with a panel member saying, “We get it, your service is commendable, that’s not what we’re here to decide.”

WHEN:

Alternet - The article says a Marine staff sergeant appeared before a panel in August; it does not specify a year.

Alternet - The article identifies Nov. 20 as the one-year anniversary of Trump’s demand that lawmakers be put on trial; the year is not specified.

(UPDATED October 23, 2026 16:22 UTC)

Nine of 12 transgender service members reviewed by military boards were approved to stay, despite orders from President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth aimed at dismissing transgender troops. The Pentagon established panels at bases around the world, but kept hearings secret, barred spouses, and did not disclose how many people were reviewed or dismissed. A former Air Force lawyer says board members considered the process unjust and refused to approve dismissals automatically. A Marine staff sergeant and an Army service member were among those cleared to remain, while the Air Force was discharging transgender personnel quickly. The administration described about 4,250 transgender troops as a costly burden, while hundreds of qualified personnel, including doctors, pilots, lawyers, and nuclear technicians, left the military. Some people challenging their dismissals remained in limbo for more than a year.