California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus Condemns Trump’s Modern-Day Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Targeting of United States Transgender Service Members
SACRAMENTO, CA — Assemblymember Chris Ward and Senator Caroline Menjivar, Chair and Vice Chair of the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, released the following statement condemning President Trump’s modern-day Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, targeting of United States transgender service members:
“An individual’s identity should not bar them from taking on the brave and selfless call to serve in our military. We affirmed this after the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) – which similarly and explicitly targeted lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer service members – and must once again affirm this due to President Trump’s second introduction of a modern-day DADT arbitrarily targeting our transgender, gender nonconforming/non-binary, and intersex (TGI) service members. We are still working to undo the harms of the decades-old DADT and will need to do so for this reintroduced, discriminatory iteration.
Anyone who meets the standards and is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to safeguard our country and protect all Americans should be able to serve – this is a core value of our military. President Trump’s reintroduced modern-day DADT policy arbitrarily targets a specific portion of service members who have already met such standards and more than proven themselves fit and ready to take on the call to serve. His singling out of valiant service members is unwarranted and will put our national security at risk by indiscriminately creating gaps in crucial positions, reducing our readiness, and increasing the burden on remaining service members.
The notion that TGI service members are less-than is not only false, but also disrespectful to those who valiantly took up the call to duty and have been serving our country and its citizens for years. We extend our deepest gratitude to all of the brave individuals who serve our nation and uphold our national security, and will always support their freedom to authentically serve and their right to receive the benefits they have earned.”
About the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus
California’s Legislative LGBTQ Caucus was formed in 2002 to create a forum for California Legislators to discuss issues that affect LGBTQ Californians and to further the goal of equality and justice for all Californians. California became the first state in the United States to officially form a caucus of openly-LBGTQ state legislators and continues to be a leader of progress for all Americans. In 2025, our membership hit a new milestone of 14 members, maintaining its position as one of the largest LGBTQ Caucus in the Nation, and continues to remain strong. Despite tremendous progress and an unprecedented swell of support for the LGBTQ community worldwide, there is still much work to do to protect and uplift the most vulnerable in our community. The LGBTQ Caucus strives to advocate for diversity and inclusion of all people, including differently abled bodies. Our Caucus is working diligently to support LGBTQ leaders that represent our community at the local, state, and federal levels.
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