A U.S. Circuit Court has struck down a last-minute appeal by the Trump administration to keep transgender recruits from joining the military starting Jan. 1.

The decision by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals leaves President Donald Trump a final legal option to appeal the Circuit Court’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court just 11 days before the new policy is set to take effect. The administration has argued that the military has not had enough time to get processes in place to screen and accept transgender forces.

The Pentagon has been working on the policies and procedures for accepting transgender forces since mid-2016.

The 4th Circuit case, which involved litigants represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, was one of three cases currently at the Circuit Court level awaiting decision that would affect the Jan. 1 deadline.

Shannon Minter, an attorney representing litigants challenging the transgender ban in a case that is currently in the D.C. Circuit Court, said the administration must now get stays in all three cases to stop three lower court decisions that transgender recruits may enlist starting Jan. 1. One way to do that is to appeal all three at once to the U.S. Supreme Court.

“The only way the government can get relief now is from [the Supreme Court,]” said Minter, legal director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Advocates for transgender troops cheered the decision.

“The courts are recognizing that the Trump administration is not telling the truth in asserting that the military is unready for transgender applicants. It is as simple as that,” said Aaron Belkin, direct or the Palm Center, which researches and advocates for transgender issues.


About Tara Copp, AP

Tara Copp is a Pentagon correspondent for the Associated Press. She was previously Pentagon bureau chief for Sightline Media Group.

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