{"id":2413822,"date":"2025-03-19T08:59:58","date_gmt":"2025-03-19T12:59:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-who-blocked-the-dods-trans-policy-donated-to-dems\/"},"modified":"2025-03-19T08:59:58","modified_gmt":"2025-03-19T12:59:58","slug":"judge-who-blocked-the-dods-trans-policy-donated-to-dems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-who-blocked-the-dods-trans-policy-donated-to-dems\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge Who Blocked The DOD&#8217;s &#8216;Trans&#8217; Policy Donated To Dems"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjudge-who-blocked-the-dods-trans-policy-donated-to-dems%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2413822&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Biden-appointed judge overseeing a lawsuit against the Pentagon&rsquo;s policy on trans-identifying individuals serving in the military is a prominent donor to Democrat political candidates and causes, The Federalist has learned.<\/p>\n<p>On Tuesday, D.C. District Court Judge Ana Reyes <a href=\"https:\/\/storage.courtlistener.com\/recap\/gov.uscourts.dcd.276845\/gov.uscourts.dcd.276845.89.0.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">granted<\/a> a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/docket\/69583866\/1\/talbott-v-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">request<\/a> from several trans-identifying service members to place a preliminary injunction on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/presidential-actions\/2025\/01\/prioritizing-military-excellence-and-readiness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Executive Order 14183<\/a> and additional guidance related to the order. <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/28\/trump-signs-orders-restoring-integrity-and-lethality-to-americas-military\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Signed<\/a> by President Donald Trump on Jan. 27, the directive declared that the &ldquo;medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals with gender dysphoria&rdquo; is &ldquo;inconsistent&rdquo; with the &ldquo;high standards for troop readiness, lethality, cohesion, honesty, humility, uniformity, and integrity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The edict instructed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to update the military&rsquo;s medical standards within 60 days of the order&rsquo;s issuance to reflect the president&rsquo;s guidance. Hegseth effectively did so in a Feb. 7 memo, ordering pauses on &ldquo;all new accessions for individuals with a history of gender dysphoria&rdquo; and &ldquo;[a]ll scheduled, unscheduled, or planned medical procedures associated with affirming or facilitating a gender transition for service members.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A separate <a href=\"https:\/\/storage.courtlistener.com\/recap\/gov.uscourts.dcd.276845\/gov.uscourts.dcd.276845.63.1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pentagon memo<\/a> dated Feb. 26 revealed that the agency had begun to develop the process of removing trans-identifying troops from the service. <\/p>\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/storage.courtlistener.com\/recap\/gov.uscourts.dcd.276845\/gov.uscourts.dcd.276845.88.0.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">one-page order<\/a> occupying her Tuesday ruling, Reyes directed the Trump administration to &ldquo;maintain and continue Plaintiffs&rsquo; military statuses&rdquo; and &ldquo;take all steps necessary to effectuate&rdquo; her decision.<\/p>\n<p>The administration was further instructed to &ldquo;provide written notice of th[e] Order by 5:00 pm eastern on March 21, 2025, to all branches of the Department of Defense and to any other entity responsible for implementing military policy.&rdquo; Defendants must confirm with the court by 6 p.m. ET that same day that it has followed these orders, according to the ruling. <\/p>\n<p>The preliminary injunction will not take effect until 10:01 a.m. ET on Friday, &ldquo;unless stayed by an appellate court&rdquo; before then. <\/p>\n<p>Reyes&rsquo; willingness to block Trump&rsquo;s order was evident throughout the case&rsquo;s prior court proceedings &mdash; so much so that the Justice Department (DOJ) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/us-justice-department-accuses-judge-reviewing-trump-transgender-military-ban-2025-02-22\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">filed<\/a> a <a href=\"https:\/\/fingfx.thomsonreuters.com\/gfx\/legaldocs\/xmvjjokmjvr\/JUDICIARY_REYES_COMPLAINT_complaint.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">complaint<\/a> against the Biden appointee for allegedly engaging in &ldquo;hostile and egregious misconduct&rdquo; during the case&rsquo;s Feb. 18-19 hearings.<\/p>\n<p>In its filing, the DOJ claimed that Reyes &mdash; who is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonblade.com\/2023\/02\/17\/ana-reyes-confirmed-as-first-lgbtq-federal-judge-in-d-c\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reportedly<\/a> a member of the LGBT community &mdash; contested the validity of Trump&rsquo;s order by disagreeing with the fact that there are only two sexes. According to the court transcript cited by the administration, Reyes said, &ldquo;[T]his executive order is premised on an assertion that&rsquo;s not biologically correct. There are anywhere near about 30 different intersex examples. So, someone who does not have just an XX or XY chromosome is not just male or female; they&rsquo;re intersex. And there are over 30 potential different intersex examples.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The complaint also accused Reyes of &ldquo;questioning a Department of Justice attorney regarding his religious beliefs and then using him unwillingly as a physical prop in her courtroom theatrics.&rdquo; Such purported aggression from the judge toward <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/LauraPowellEsq\/status\/1899908986356613170\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hegseth<\/a> and the administration&rsquo;s order was also evident during last week&rsquo;s court hearing, as described by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/federal-judge-rips-doj-lawyers-demands-written-retraction-from-hegseth-over-transgender-military-policy-post\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fox News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While unbecoming of a judge, Reyes&rsquo; reported behavior is unsurprising given her fealty to leftist causes. From donating to Democrat campaigns to working alongside left-wing organizations, the Biden appointee&rsquo;s track record calls into question her ability to remain impartial on political matters brought before her.<\/p>\n<h2>Show Me the Money!<\/h2>\n<p>One of the best ways to learn about someone is to look at what they spend their money on &mdash; and Reyes is no exception to that rule. <\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/data\/receipts\/individual-contributions\/?contributor_name=ana+reyes&amp;contributor_employer=WILLIAMS+%26+CONNOLLY+LLP\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Federal Election Commission (FEC) records<\/a>, Reyes has collectively given thousands of dollars to various Democrat candidates and causes throughout her professional career. <\/p>\n<p>During her time working as a private lawyer, she donated to the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama (2012), Hillary Clinton (2008 and 2016), Kamala Harris (2020), and Joe Biden (2020). She&rsquo;s additionally shelled out money to several Democrat House and Senate candidates, including the campaigns of Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.<\/p>\n<p>Reyes&rsquo; financial support for Democrats also extends to left-wing political action committees. <\/p>\n<p>From 2021-2022, she gave more than $1,700 to Defeat by Tweet, which is &ldquo;a Democratic-aligned super PAC that allows liberal donors to sign up to contribute as little as 1 cent to political organizers in battleground states for each time President Donald Trump posts to Twitter,&rdquo; according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/political-party\/defeat-by-tweet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">InfluenceWatch<\/a>. The organization was <a href=\"https:\/\/finance.yahoo.com\/news\/trump-tweets-super-pac-fundraising-for-black-communities-ahead-of-november-elections-002231034.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW5mbHVlbmNld2F0Y2gub3JnLw&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAD_r9GDnUKvLyeA7BuI8mnAFXRCaFRgckOS3vXoOITzMeK8UArbB-d9nw0Z-RmYeLERCYXm955PmrLUeiITdDtvOoUvVpi9CdEiWfnq2-3Sulkj21rZ9KmDVdzUFlAYVaah4cK5FRhfgLq7WUvcdDGEwjMvIkQVcYlXtYqEzSpWR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reportedly<\/a> launched with assistance from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/person\/patrisse-cullors\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Patrisse Cullors<\/a>, a co-founder of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/movement\/black-lives-matter\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Black Lives Matter<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>According to its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defeatbytweet.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">website<\/a>, Defeat by Tweet has closed its operations since the 2024 election, with the group reallocating its &ldquo;final resources and support&rdquo; to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackchurchpac.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Black Church PAC<\/a>. The latter organization seeks to &ldquo;mobiliz[e] churches and leaders nationwide to reclaim political power, fight [so-called] voter suppression, end mass incarceration, and heal communities impacted by gun violence.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>In 2020, Reyes gave numerous donations to Win the Era, a political action committee <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wintheera.com\/about\/our-story\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">founded<\/a> by failed 2020 presidential candidate and later Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.<\/p>\n<p>Since at least 2013, Reyes has also given dozens of small-dollar donations to <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/actblue\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ActBlue<\/a>, a Democrat-aligned fundraising platform that is the subject of <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/10\/31\/house-republicans-subpoena-actblue-records-over-alleged-foreign-election-interference-activities\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">congressional<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/10\/24\/lawmakers-to-issue-subpoenas-over-alleged-actblue-foreign-election-interference-scheme\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">state<\/a> investigations over allegations that it <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/08\/22\/democrats-fundraising-machine-draws-accusations-of-potentially-illegal-schemes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">allowed<\/a> unlawful foreign monies to fund left-wing political causes.<\/p>\n<h2>Left-Wing Legal Career<\/h2>\n<p>Equally notable about Reyes is her time in the private sector as a left-wing lawyer. <\/p>\n<p>According to her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dcd.uscourts.gov\/content\/district-judge-ana-c-reyes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">district court bio<\/a>, Reyes spent the bulk of her legal career (2001-2023) working for the law firm known as Williams &amp; Connolly LLP.<\/p>\n<p>While at the firm, Reyes served as co-chair for Williams &amp; Connolly&rsquo;s International Disputes practice group and on its executive committee. Her legal work &ldquo;focused on international litigation, representing foreign governments, foreign government officials, and multinational companies,&rdquo; and also touched on &ldquo;patent, legal malpractice, and other complex civil litigation matters.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>It was during her tenure at Williams &amp; Connolly that Reyes notably litigated against the same president (Trump) whose policies she&rsquo;s now ruling on as a federal judge. <\/p>\n<p>In 2018, Reyes was part of the legal team representing plaintiffs in a challenge to an asylum rule implemented by the Trump administration. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.courthousenews.com\/port-of-entry-asylum-requirement-tossed-by-federal-judge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Courthouse News Service<\/a>, the rule sought to make illegal immigrants who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border &ldquo;outside a port of entry ineligible for asylum.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A district court judge issued an August 2019 decision blocking the policy&rsquo;s enforcement, which an action Reyes claimed was &ldquo;a win for refugees.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A quick search through Williams &amp; Connolly&rsquo;s website reveals the firm&rsquo;s devotion to leftist orthodoxy. <\/p>\n<p>The organization notably boasts an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wc.com\/Diversity-Inclusion\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">entire webpage<\/a> touting its dedication to so-called &ldquo;diversity and inclusion.&rdquo; This includes a Williams &amp; Connolly &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wc.com\/Firm\/Diversity-Inclusion\/Diversity-Inclusion-Committee\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Diversity &amp; Inclusion Committee<\/a>&rdquo; and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wc.com\/Firm\/Diversity-Inclusion\/Initiatives\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">listed initiatives<\/a> on how the firm aims to &ldquo;enhance the diversity of the pool of candidates the firm considers and hires.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>Williams &amp; Connolly also offers &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wc.com\/Firm\/Diversity-Inclusion\/Summer-Associate-Diversity-Scholarships\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Summer Associate Diversity Scholarships<\/a>,&rdquo; which the firm claims are eligible for &ldquo;exceptional applicants with outstanding academic records, whose demonstrated desire to succeed, background, life experiences, interests and achievements can contribute to our firm&rsquo;s commitment to diversity and inclusion.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>During the 2024 election cycle, 85.6 percent of Williams &amp; Connolly employee contributions to federal candidates went to Democrats, while 14.4 percent went to Republicans, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/orgs\/williams-connolly\/recipients?id=D000031073\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">OpenSecrets<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/orgs\/williams-connolly\/totals?id=D000031073\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Similar trends<\/a> among firm employees were also seen in prior election years.<\/p>\n<p>Reyes&rsquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dcd.uscourts.gov\/content\/district-judge-ana-c-reyes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">legal work<\/a> also includes spending <a href=\"https:\/\/www.investopedia.com\/ask\/answers\/08\/pro-bono.asp#:~:text=Pro%20bono%20is%20short%20for,bono%20services%20to%20nonprofit%20organizations.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pro bono<\/a> time helping groups devoted to acquiring asylum for refugees, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/human-rights-first\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Human Rights First<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/government-agency\/united-nations-high-commissioner-for-refugees-unhcr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees<\/a>. Both organizations seek to advance left-wing interests, with the latter promoting &ldquo;a left-of-center view on gender issues, LGBT interests, the environment, and immigration,&rdquo; according to InfluenceWatch. <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>   Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Biden-appointed judge overseeing a lawsuit against the Pentagon\u2019s policy on trans-identifying individuals serving in the military is a prominent donor to Democrat political candidates and causes, The Federalist has learned. On Tuesday, D.C. District Court Judge Ana Reyes granted a request from several trans-identifying service members to place a preliminary injunction on Executive Order<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2413823,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Ana-Reyes.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2413822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Ana-Reyes.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2413822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2413822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2413822\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2413823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2413822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2413822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2413822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}