Colorado Governor Jared Polis, the
nation's first and only openly gay elected governor, on Wednesday
criticized President Donald Trump's policy of excluding transgender
troops.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court allowed
the policy to take effect as four cases challenging the ban move
forward.
(Related: Supreme
Court allows Trump's transgender military ban to take effect.)
Appearing on WBUR's Here & Now,
Polis was asked about the high court's move.
"It's
unfortunate that President Trump, against the recommendations of our
senior military leaders, is excluding perfectly capable soldiers with
strong performance ratings simply because of their gender identity,”
Polis
said. “It makes us weaker as a country and prevents the very
cohesion of our military units that lead to a strong defense. So
that's unfortunate."
Polis was also
asked: “How important is it that you're the first openly gay
elected governor of any state?”
“Well, it's never
about that,” Polis responded. “It's really about how can I be an
effective governor that improves the quality of life for Coloradans.
Whatever aspect of diversity you bring to the job is not the
yardstick that the voters, straight or gay, will measure your
performance by.”
Polis and his
longtime partner Marlon Reis are raising two children, son Caspian
Julius and daughter Cora Barucha.