New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, who is
vying for the Democratic presidential nomination, said Sunday that
he'd reverse President Donald Trump's ban on transgender troops
“right away,” if elected president.
Booker made the pledge while speaking
to more than 300 voters, the AP reported.
When a woman asked the candidate how he
would protect LGBT rights as president, Booker answered: “When I am
president of the United States, right away I will end this
ridiculous, insulting, un-American ban on transgender Americans
serving in the military.”
Trump first tweeted his decision to ban
transgender troops from serving in 2017. Four lawsuits followed
challenging implementation of the ban. Last week, the administration
said its ban would take effect on April 12, the result of a Supreme
Court decision allowing implementation while the policy is being
challenged in the courts.
(Related: Defense
Department says it will implement transgender military ban on April
12.)
The Palm Center, a think tank at the
University of California, Santa Barbara that promotes the study of
LGBT people serving in the armed forces, called on other presidential
candidates to commit to ending the ban.
“Sen. Cory Booker has listened to the
considered judgment of all five military service chiefs and has taken
a strong stand on the need to rid our military of discrimination on
day one of his tenure if elected,” said Aaron Belkin, director of
the Palm Center. “This is the kind of leadership needed to ensure
that politics doesn’t stand in the way of military readiness. We
look forward to hearing where other candidates stand on this key
issue of immediate reversal.”