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Friday 12 april 2019
TRANSGENDER tion to another gender." geons general and two
Continued from Front It said the discharge should former military surgeons
"The only thing deficient is come after an individual general, saying they are
any medical science be- "has been formally coun- "troubled by the Defense
hind this decision," Ameri- seled on his or her failure to Department's character-
can Medical Association adhere to such standards ization of the need to un-
President Dr. Barbara L. and has been given an op- dergo gender transition as
McAneny said. portunity to correct those a 'deficiency,' and by the
Decorated Army helicop- deficiencies." addition of gender dyspho-
ter pilot Lindsey Muller was The policy calls for troops ria to official lists of 'con-
a plaintiff in one of four law- diagnosed with gender genital or developmental
suits that tried to block the dysphoria to be medically defects' that include bed-
policy from taking effect. evaluated before discharg- wetting and 'disturbances
But the final legal injunction ing them to see if they of perception, thinking,
was lifted in March, though qualify as having a disabil- emotional control, or be-
new legal challenges are This undated file photo provided by her wife Jessica Kibodeaux ity. Otherwise gender dys- havior.'"
expected. shows Lindsey Muller and her dog Emma, hiking in the Chey- phoria can be considered An estimated 14,700 troops
Muller said she and other enne Mountains west of Fort Carson, Colo. a "condition that interferes identify as transgender.
transgender troops feel de- Associated Press with military service" like Military chiefs testified be-
moralized. sleep walking, bed wetting, fore Congress last year that
"Under our ethical stan- will not boot current service health care for trans ser- motion sickness, and per- they found no problems
dards, we can't say any- members who transitioned vicemembers. She plans to sonality disorders. with transgender troops on
thing derogatory against before the Pentagon is- retire from the military next "They can dress it up in morale or unit cohesion.
the administration, while sued its directive, though year after serving 20 years. whatever words they want, Many have received med-
we are being presented in the government has also Under the new policy, a but when you carefully look als since the armed forces
a disparaging and deroga- said it retains the right to service member can be at this it's total disrespect welcomed them in 2016.
tory light," said Muller, 37, eliminate that protection. discharged based on a di- for these human beings Transgender troops say the
who is based in Fort Carson, Muller said the policy will agnosis of gender dyspho- by saying a core piece of regulation mirrors the "don't
Colorado. cost the armed forces far ria if he or she is "unable or them is not acceptable," ask, don't tell" policy that
Troops like Muller, who be- more in terms of losing ex- unwilling to adhere to all former acting U.S. Army Sur- prohibited gay men and
gan openly identifying as a perienced personnel like applicable standards, in- geon General Gale Pollock women from serving open-
woman in 2016, are worried herself and training re- cluding the standards as- said. ly in the armed forces be-
they will be discharged. placements than any costs sociated with his or her bio- Pollock signed a statement fore Congress repealed it in
The administration says it associated with specialized logical sex, or seeks transi- with three former U.S. sur- 2010.q
Susan Rice says she won't challenge GOP Sen. Collins in 2020

NEW YORK (AP) — Susan President Barack Obama, of Maine in 2020. for Supreme Court Justice the course of weighing it
Rice, who served as nation- won't be challenging Re- Rice told former Obama Brett Kavanaugh. She said all, I've decided that with
al security adviser under publican Sen. Susan Collins administration official Alys- Collins supporting Kavana- my family that the timing
really isn't right for us."
However, Rice did not rule
out a run in the future "in
Maine or beyond," she
added.
Her announcement could
free other Democrats to
enter the race.
So far, no high-profile Dem-
ocrat has announced a
challenge to Collins next
year. But the race is still ear-
ly, and Collins herself hasn't
formally announced she'll
seek re-election.
Collins' office had no imme-
In this July 7, 2016 file photo, National Security Adviser Susan diate comment Thursday.
Rice follows President Barack Obama across the South Lawn of Collins is a self-described
the White House in Washington, to board Marine One. centrist in an era of increas-
Associated Press
ingly polarized politics. First
elected to the Senate in
sa Mastromonaco at the ugh "felt like betrayal." 1996, she's now the last Re-
10th annual Women in the Rice said during the event publican member of Con-
World Summit on Thursday on Thursday that her gress from New England.
in New York that she loves daughter is going into her Rice's maternal grand-
Maine and that her family junior year of high school parents emigrated from
has deep roots in the state. and moving to Maine to Jamaica to Maine in the
But she said she decided run a campaign isn't the 1910s. Her grandfather,
with her family "that the tim- best move for her family. David Augustus Dickson,
ing really isn't right for us." Rice and her family current- worked as a shipper, porter
Rice tantalized Democrats ly reside in Washington D.C. and janitor. Rice's grand-
in October when she ex- "I really believe that the mother, Mary Dickson, a
pressed interest in Collins' state of Maine deserves the maid and seamstress, was
seat during the conten- best possible leadership in named Maine State Moth-
tious confirmation hearing the Senate," she said. "In er of the Year in 1950.q