--- title: Transgender Military Ban: Senators Move to Block Ban description: Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Susan Collins introduced a proposal to stop Trump's plan to ban transgender people from military service canonical: https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/ author: Katie Reilly article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-09-11T23:14:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:54:07.653Z article:section: Politics og:title: Democrat and Republican Senators Move to Stop Trump's Transgender Military Ban og:description: "Gender identity should have nothing to do with it" og:url: https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c8a08f7580c8a2c/6988dd4c86f68e49c26e65dd/gillibrand-collins-transgender-amendment.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4680 og:image:height: 2633 og:image:alt: Senators Hold Briefing To Propose An Independent Military Justice System og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Democrat and Republican Senators Move to Stop Trump's Transgender Military Ban twitter:description: "Gender identity should have nothing to do with it" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c8a08f7580c8a2c/6988dd4c86f68e49c26e65dd/gillibrand-collins-transgender-amendment.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Democrat and Republican Senators Move to Stop Trump's Transgender Military Ban > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=a844910a-febd-46c3-b0ce-a0daca55e588&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * D.C. Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=a844910a-febd-46c3-b0ce-a0daca55e588&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=a844910a-febd-46c3-b0ce-a0daca55e588&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Hundreds in New York Protest Trump's Ban on Transgender Troops [Watch (HLS stream): Hundreds in New York Protest Trump's Ban on Transgender Troops](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/OjsfNv4w.m3u8) (1:01)  _Published 2017-07-27. Demonstrators have flocked to a military recruiting station in New York City to protest President Donald Trump's abrupt ban on transgender troops in the military._  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Sep 11, 2017 11:14 PM UTC  New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand speaks while Maine Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) listens during a news conference on changing the military justice system, on Dec. 2, 2014 in Washington, D.C. New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand speaks while Maine Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) listens during a news conference on changing the military justice system, on Dec. 2, 2014 in Washington, D.C. Mark Wilson/Getty Images  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Sep 11, 2017 11:14 PM UTC New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat, and Maine Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican, introduced a bipartisan amendment to protect transgender service members from President Trump’s plan to [ban them from the military](http://time.com/4916871/donald-trump-transgender-military-ban/). The amendment introduced Monday would prohibit the Department of Defense from dismissing current transgender service members “solely on the basis of the member’s gender identity,” Senators said in a statment. “Any individual who wants to join our military and meets the standards should be allowed to serve, period. Gender identity should have nothing to do with it,” Gillibrand, a Democrat, said in a statement. “If individuals are willing to put on the uniform of our country, be deployed in war zones, and risk their lives for our freedoms, then we should be expressing our gratitude to them, not trying to exclude them from military service,” said Collins, a Republican. td {border: 1px solid #ccc;}br {mso-data-placement:same-cell;} Last month, Trump [formally ordered](http://time.com/4916871/donald-trump-transgender-military-ban/) a reversal of a 2016 order that had allowed transgender people to serve openly in the military, but it is not clear how that will affect the [estimated 1,320 to 6,630 transgender service members](http://time.com/4874380/donald-trump-military-transgender-how-many/) currently in the active duty military. [Secretary of Defense James Mattis](http://time.com/4921270/james-mattis-transgender-ban-donald-trump/) has said transgender service members will be allowed to stay in the military temporarily while he figures out how to implement Trump’s ban. ## Transcript [ INAUDIBLE ] We are not from [ INAUDIBLE ]. [ APPLAUSE ] [ INAUDIBLE ] The fact that Donald Trump, who knows this recruiting station all too well, would not even look at it Or acknowledge it on his way to Studio 54, when other people were willing to make that sacrifice. What he does today is outrageous, disgusting, and dishonors the armed forces of the United States of America. Transgender rights are human rights. Yeah. [ APPLAUSE ] High gender rights are supervised. Now we already know what this president thinks of immigrants and Mexicans and muslims and the poor and the sick and now we know what he thinks of our transgender people. [ APPLAUSE ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/"},"headline":"Democrat and Republican Senators Move to Stop Trump's Transgender Military Ban","datePublished":"2017-09-11T23:14:59.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:54:07.653Z","description":"\"Gender identity should have nothing to do with it\"","url":"https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/","keywords":["Senate","Congress","White House","Donald Trump","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c8a08f7580c8a2c/6988dd4c86f68e49c26e65dd/gillibrand-collins-transgender-amendment.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Katie Reilly","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c8a08f7580c8a2c/6988dd4c86f68e49c26e65dd/gillibrand-collins-transgender-amendment.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Senators Hold Briefing To Propose An Independent Military Justice System","caption":"Senators Hold Briefing To Propose An Independent Military Justice System","creditText":"Mark Wilson/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/senate/","name":"Senate"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/","name":"Democrat and Republican Senators Move to Stop Trump's Transgender Military Ban"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Hundreds in New York Protest Trump's Ban on Transgender Troops","description":"Demonstrators have flocked to a military recruiting station in New York City to protest President Donald Trump's abrupt ban on transgender troops in the military.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/OjsfNv4w/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-07-27T01:48:47.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/OjsfNv4w.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/","duration":"PT1M1S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4936786/transgender-military-ban-amendment-susan-collins-kirsten-gillibrand/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```