Biden executive order provides free transgender surgery to military members



Transgender surgery for active military personnel and veterans will be paid for by American taxpayers thanks to an executive order signed by President Joe Biden.

Biden signed the executive order — "Enabling All Qualified Americans to Serve Their Country in Uniform" — on Jan. 25, which repeals an Obama-era policy that banned federally funded gender reassignment surgery, according to the Washington Examiner.

Biden's order states that the military "thrives when it is composed of diverse Americans who can meet the rigorous standards for military service, and an inclusive military strengthens our national security."

"It is my conviction as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces that gender identity should not be a bar to military service," Biden declared. "Moreover, there is substantial evidence that allowing transgender individuals to serve in the military does not have any meaningful negative impact on the Armed Forces."

Recent Department of Defense memos confirm free gender reassignment surgery would be added to the military benefits package.

"This revised policy will also ensure all medically-necessary transition related care authorized by law is available to all Service members," Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin wrote.

Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough sent an order to VA employees, saying, "Perform an assessment of the necessary steps to eliminate the exclusion of 'gender alteration' (gender affirmation surgery) in the medical benefits package."

In February, McDonough ordered a top-down review of department policies to ensure the VA was complying with Biden's executive order against any discrimination against transgender service members.

"My goal as secretary is to make sure VA is welcoming to all veterans, including our transgender veterans," McDonough said.

TRICARE, the military's health insurance provider, lists hormone replacement therapy and psychotherapy for gender dysphoria as "covered services."

"TRICARE generally doesn't cover surgery for gender dysphoria," the health care provider states on its website. "However, active duty service members may request a waiver if their provider deems surgery medically necessary."

A 2019 report from USA Today revealed that the "Pentagon has spent nearly $8 million to treat more than 1,500 transgender troops since 2016, including 161 surgical procedures." The investigation stated that "1,071 service members have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Public Health Service on active duty and in the reserve force."

Gender reassignment surgery can cost more than $100,000.

A 2017 report found there are more than 134,000 veterans and 15,000 service members who identify as transgender.

Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), who is an Iraq War veteran and sits on the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, supports transgender individuals serving in the military, but disputes American taxpayers funding sex-change surgeries.

"This is radical and new territory for a presidential administration to force taxpayers to fund sexual reassignment surgeries for those in the military," Banks told the Examiner. "I'm compassionate toward those individuals who want to undergo an elective surgery of this nature, but taxpayers shouldn't be on the hook to pay for it. It's constitutionally dubious that Congress hasn't passed these measures, but the administration, in a radical way, is pushing through this agenda. I sit on the committee that should debate these issues."

'Transphobic' joke told on 'Saturday Night Live' hilariously launches the left into feeding frenzy — on itself



The left is devouring itself yet again.

And on the menu this time is Michael Che, co-host of "Weekend Update" on "Saturday Night Live." During the show's segment a few days back, Che noted that President Joe Biden reversed former President Donald Trump's ban on transgender people serving in the military.

As the crowd dutifully responded with applause and cheers, Che continued: "It's good news — except Biden is calling the policy, 'Don't ask, don't tuck'" — a riff on the former policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which prohibited the military from discriminating against gays and lesbians who kept their lifestyles to themselves.

The audience responded with decidedly nervous laughter as Che threw up his hands and haltingly said, "Which is not good news." After the camera shifted to co-host Colin Jost, Che elicited his own laugh and said, "Whatever."

Rose Dommu with Netflix editorial didn't find the joke very humorous:

This isn’t funny and so many people had to let this joke get to air y’all are dumb https://t.co/CyYQZXEeJX
— Rose Dommu (@Rose Dommu)1612117187.0

What happened next?

Outcry from Che's fellow leftists was loud and clear. LBGTQ Nation called his joke "transphobic."

Charlotte Clymer, a lesbian Army vet with Catholics For Choice, lambasted Che and "SNL": "What is Saturday Night Live's weird obsession with transphobic nonsense?" Clymer tweeted. "I honestly don't get it. It's so lazy and sad. Last night, Michael Che joked about the repeal of the trans ban being called 'don't ask, don't tuck' -- who is this 'joke' for?"

Clymer added, "For all the scaremongering over trans people, it never ceases to be incredibly creepy the way some cis people are obsessed with our bodies. It's gross and weird and creepy."

Others responded similarly:

  • BuzzFeed Daily's co-host Zach Stafford said, "This is so gross wow."
  • "They really need to sort out their writer's room," another commenter wrote. "Normalizing transphobia gets people killed."
  • "I swear this is like Michael Che's whole schtick," another user said. "Never heard him tell a funny joke, so he has to compensate instead by saying s**t like this."

Neither Che nor "Saturday Night Live" have commented about the joke, Salon reported. But you know who did run a report on it? NBC News — which happens to be on the same TV network as SNL.

In fact, NBC News posted a number of tweets about the controversy, on its own Twitter page as well as twice on NBCOut — prompting one commenter to ask, "How many times are you going to tweet this, NBC News?"

Not the first time for Che

Salon said Che has faced previous criticism for anti-trans humor, noting that in 2019 he called Caitlyn Jenner by the celeb's former name (i.e., "dead naming") and misgendered the former Olympic champion.

The outlet also said Che was criticized for using a transphobic slur in his 2016 stand-up special "Michael Che Matters."

Anything else?

One might find it interesting — or perhaps not — that a number of Twitter users vigorously defended Che and SNL:

  • "They are comedians," one commenter wrote. "The last I checked you go to comedy club, and comedians make fun of every constitutionally protected class. It has been for generations."
  • "I don't think it is that much of a slight," another user said. "All groups are satirized on SNL. The crap done to mainstream groups is always open season. Accepting a group means you are fare game."
  • "OK, I have a friend who is trans, and he shared a clip of this on Sunday because they thought it was funny," another commenter noted. "Their friends liked and shared it because they thought it was funny. Just saying, not everyone in the community was offended."

But one also wonders how enthusiastic their entreaties would be if a conservative had uttered the same joke.

Oh well. Che sera sera.

Army chaplain suggests transgender soldiers could be 'mentally unfit.' Now he's under investigation because of the remarks.



An Army chaplain is under investigation after he reportedly said that transgender soldiers are "mentally unfit" and "unqualified to serve" in the U.S. military.

On Monday, President Joe Biden issued an executive order reversing former President Donald Trump's ban on transgender people serving in the military.

What are the details?

According to a Friday report from the Daily Mail, Army chaplain Maj. Andrew Calvert is facing an investigation after he made the remarks on an article that appeared on his Facebook feed. He reportedly made the remarks the same day Biden overturned Trump's previous ban.

"How is rejecting reality (biology) not evidence that a person is mentally unfit (ill), and thus making that person unqualified to serve?" he wrote, as reported by the Daily Mail. "There is little difference in this than over those who believe and argue for a 'flat earth,' despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary. The motivation is different, but the argument is the same."

The outlet reported that Calvert's Facebook page has "now seemingly been disabled" and revealed that the Security Force Assistant Command says it has launched an investigation into Calvert's remarks.

A portion of the statement on the investigation states, "Always remember to 'Think, Type, Post' when it comes to engaging in conversation on social media platforms. We are soldiers 24/7 and that means always treating people with dignity and respect. We are aware of the recent comments posted to the Army Times Facebook in regard to the ban being removed on transgender service members. This incident is under investigation."

The statement continued, "The Security Force Assistant Command Enterprise fully supports the Commander in Chief, Secretary of Defense, and all DoD policies. The United States Army has a strict standard against any form of discrimination based on gender identity."

Author DEBUNKS Transgender Hate Crime Myths

Author DEBUNKS Transgender Hate Crime Myths