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Five transgender decorated service members stood before the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee two weeks ago to testify against Trump’s trans military ban. The five service members?—?Navy Lt. Cmdr. Blake Dremann, Army Capt. Alivia Stehlik, Army Capt. Jennifer Peace, Army Staff Sgt. Patricia King and Navy Officer Akira Wyatt?—?explained to the subcommittee that transitioning did not affect their jobs. In fact, Stehlik said in her testimony her transition “?has dramatically increased the readiness and lethality of every branch of the armed forces.” Read more »

If President Trump is ready and prepared to listen, transgender troops want to talk to him face-to-face. Captain Jennifer Peace, director-at-large of the trans service personnel advocacy and support group Sparta Pride, told The Daily Beast that she hoped President Trump, Vice President Pence, and acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan would be prepared to meet transgender troops in person... Read more »

A group of Democratic House military veterans on Tuesday called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to support a resolution overturning President Trump's emergency declaration on the southern border. Read more »

The Trump administration adamantly defended its new ban on most transgender people in the military on Wednesday, repeatedly claiming “this is not a ban” and “it does not allow discrimination.” Read more »

The Defense Department’s cyber warriors shouldn’t be too concerned about artificial intelligence taking their jobs, according to their commander. Instead, U.S. Cyber Command is looking for troops able to wield AI like a weapon. Read more »

A row over anti-Semitism has exposed a cultural and generational divide in the Democratic party, which threatens its cohesion as it attempts to take on Donald Trump’s White House. Read more »

Three former military secretaries have admonished the Pentagon for making “misleading claims” to Congress in defense of the ban on transgender military service last week. Read more »

Maryland representatives in the U.S. House also provided statements that underscore their commitment to addressing the climate change problem. Rep. Elijah Cummings was the first to stand with the MIT group and to help "prevent climate change disasters.” Rep. Anthony Brown wrote that we have a "moral obligation to act immediately and aggressively" and that "we must rise to the challenge" calling for "bold, transformative" leadership. Read more »

The former secretaries of the Air Force, Army and Navy, along with instructors at the Air Force and Coast Guard academies, are accusing the Pentagon of deceiving Congress when Defense officials testified last week that medical treatment for transgender troops keeps them off duty longer than other personnel — and of ignoring the military's own data to the contrary. Read more »

Since 2016, the U.S. military has spent around $8 million on health care to treat the gender dysphoria and gender-confirmation procedures of roughly 1,200 transgender troops. Read more »