Trump asks Supreme Court to uphold military’s ban on transgender service members | CNN Politics

The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to uphold its policy banning transgender Americans from serving in the military, the latest significant case involving trans Americans to reach the conservative court in recent years. Days after taking office last year, Trump signed an executive order directing the Pentagon to ban transgender service members as incompatible with military service. The administration is appealing a ruling from a federal court in Washington, DC, that sided with a group of trans Americans who were already serving. “The authority of the US military to determine who may serve in the nation’s armed forces is a matter of exceptional importance,” US Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Supreme Court, according to a copy of the appeal reviewed by CNN that has not yet been publicly docketed. The Supreme Court will likely decide this fall whether to hear arguments in the case. If it agrees to do so, a decision may land early next summer. Defense officials have said there are 4,240 service members across active-duty, reserve, and the National Guard ranks with a diagnosis of gender dysphoria, defined as the psychological distress an individual feels