As for the Trump Transgender ban that's a bit of a reach in this thread. Anyone who sees that as anything more than a smokescreen is deluded. The Obamacare repeal gains momentum briefly for the first time, and suddenly Trump tweets about something completely unrelated that's bound to end up all over every form of media as the main discussion piece despite the tweet having nearly no substance.
It is correct that the tweet has no substance, the Pentagon needs a written order. I'm still glad the President has made his position known. The civilian authority listening to the needs of the military authority within their own sphere, rather than pigeonholing civilian social goals into the military framework, is a nice change of pace.
It's also not solely about the cost of castration and/or hormone treatment as Mr. Trump's tweets implied (although there is absolutely no reason taxpayers should ever pay for the elective surgery of anyone), it's also about combat readiness, unit cohesion, and the stability of the individual. A 41% suicide rate ain't nothin' to fuck with, and putting potential combat stress on top of that? I mean, you can say we won't put them in combat roles, but is Bradley Manning a good track record in that case as well? I think the stability factor is a concern regardless of what service role they have.
Anyhow, don't really care if it's a smokescreen, it's something I'd like to see happen.
