Just one week into his second term, President Donald Trump signed an executive order prohibiting transgender Americans from enlisting or serving in the U.S. military. And in early June, the Department of Defense — now led by Secretary Pete Hegseth — began notifying currently serving transgender service members that they must leave the military, either voluntarily or involuntarily.
But U.S. Army Major Anthony Guerrero is speaking out forcefully against the policy. In a powerful op-ed published Monday, June 30, by The New York Times, Guerrero condemned the administration’s move as morally wrong and damaging to the integrity of the armed forces.
“The president issued the order in January, and the Supreme Court last month allowed the administration to start enforcing it,” Guerrero wrote. “The order may be legally sound, but it is neither moral nor ethical. I believe it is my duty as an officer to dissent when faced with such an order.”
Guerrero, a conservative evangelical Christian and a Republican, noted that while he holds personal beliefs about gender and transitioning, they have no bearing on whether transgender Americans are fit to serve.
“I may not be the sort of person you’d expect to oppose a ban on transgender troops,” he wrote. “Though I have deep compassion for people who feel they are in the wrong body, I do not believe that transitioning is the right course. But my views are irrelevant to the issue of transgender troops. What matters is whether someone can serve — and many transgender Americans have proven they can.”
He called Trump’s policy “blatantly discriminatory,” arguing that it undermines, rather than strengthens, military readiness.
“This executive order is a legal shield for prejudice,” Guerrero said. “It packages hate as national security and uses medical jargon to rationalize exclusion. The silent compliance from military leadership sends a disturbing message: that our armed forces only welcome those who conform to a specific ideology, regardless of their qualifications or commitment.”
The New York Times noted that Guerrero wrote the op-ed in his personal capacity, and his views do not reflect those of the U.S. Military Academy, the U.S. Army, or the Department of Defense.
Guerrero acknowledged the risks of publicly opposing a presidential order. “Disobeying a lawful order can lead to dismissal, forfeiture of pay, even jail time under the Uniform Code of Military Justice,” he wrote. “But this issue matters too much. I can’t stay silent while the Army I love forgets the lessons it should have already learned.”
His remarks come as the administration faces growing criticism over the ban, including from legal advocates, veterans’ groups, and lawmakers who argue the move is discriminatory and counterproductive.
