{"id":2434124,"date":"2025-05-13T13:40:01","date_gmt":"2025-05-13T17:40:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/media-claims-of-15k-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/"},"modified":"2025-05-13T13:43:11","modified_gmt":"2025-05-13T17:43:11","slug":"media-claims-of-15k-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/media-claims-of-15k-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/","title":{"rendered":"Media Claims Of 15K &#8216;Trans&#8217; Troops In The Military Are Total Bunk"},"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\">24<\/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%2Fmedia-claims-of-15k-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk%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=2434124&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>The article discusses the controversy surrounding the claim that there are 15,000 transgender individuals serving in the U.S. military, a figure repeatedly cited by media sources during the political discussions following President Trump&#8217;s inauguration. The narrative suggested that removing these individuals would negatively impact military readiness and national security. However, the article argues that there is no considerable evidence to support this figure.<\/p>\n<p>Following a Supreme Court ruling,the Pentagon announced it has resumed the process of removing service members diagnosed with gender dysphoria,with around 1,000 individuals starting voluntary separations. As of February, about 4,200 active-duty, Guard, and Reserve service members were reported to be diagnosed with gender dysphoria, a number consistent with earlier reports.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dont-talk-to-me-watch-trump-shoot-down-reporter-and-his-1-sided-question-about-targeting-jack-smith-other-deep-staters\/\" title=\"&#039;Don&#039;t Talk to Me&#039;: Watch Trump Shoot Down Reporter and His 1-Sided Question About Targeting Jack Smith, Other Deep Staters\">article criticizes mainstream media<\/a> for perpetuating the 15,000 figure without substantiated reporting and suggests that reputable journalism has questioned this number. Various outlets, including The New York Times and Washington Post, are mentioned for reprinting the unfounded claims. It highlights the inconsistency in military branches&#8217; reporting on the issue and indicates that while some branches are updating their policies regarding individuals with gender dysphoria, the overall narrative presented by the media lacks clarity and factual basis.  <\/p>\n<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 class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:2016.06.17_Baltimore_Pride,_Baltimore,_MD_USA_6761_(35217057932).jpg\">Ted Eytan\/Wikimedia Commons\/<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC-SA 2.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/13\/surprise-media-claims-of-15000-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Surprise!%20Media%20Claims%20Of%2015,000%20%E2%80%98Trans%E2%80%99%20Troops%20In%20The%20Military%20Are%20Total%20Bunk&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/13\/surprise-media-claims-of-15000-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Surprise!%20Media%20Claims%20Of%2015,000%20%E2%80%98Trans%E2%80%99%20Troops%20In%20The%20Military%20Are%20Total%20Bunk&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/13\/surprise-media-claims-of-15000-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/13\/surprise-media-claims-of-15000-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Surprise!%20Media%20Claims%20Of%2015,000%20%E2%80%98Trans%E2%80%99%20Troops%20In%20The%20Military%20Are%20Total%20Bunk&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/13\/surprise-media-claims-of-15000-trans-troops-in-the-military-are-total-bunk\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>In the weeks surrounding President Trump&rsquo;s inauguration, America&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >propaganda press relentlessly cited leftist claims<\/a> that 15,000 trans-identifying individuals would be booted from the military under the new commander-in-chief. The insinuation, of course, was that such a move would harm &ldquo;military readiness&rdquo; and the country&rsquo;s national security.<\/p>\n<p>But as it turns out,<strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>there is still no evidence the 15,000 figure parroted by so-called &ldquo;journalists&rdquo; is even remotely viable.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1692983136\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Following a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/06\/scotus-blocks-lower-court-injunction-on-trump-admins-military-trans-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">victory<\/a> at the U.S. Supreme Court, the Pentagon <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/05\/09\/after-scotus-victory-pentagon-resumes-process-of-removing-trans-identifying-troops-from-service\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> last week that it has resumed the process of removing individuals diagnosed with gender dysphoria from the service.  The agency disclosed in a press release that approximately 1,000 service members &ldquo;who have self-identified as being diagnosed with gender dysphoria will begin the voluntary separation process.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>This revelation prompted The Federalist to probe the Defense Department and branches of the armed services to determine how many trans-identifying troops are currently serving in the military and how many have begun the voluntary separation process in accordance with Pentagon guidelines. <\/p>\n<p>In a statement to The Federalist, a Defense Department official said that, as of February, there are &ldquo;approximately 4,200 Active-duty, Guard and Reserve service members currently serving diagnosed with gender dysphoria&rdquo; throughout the armed forces. The total is roughly the same that was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/27\/us\/politics\/trans-troops-pentagon-figures.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> by the agency in February. <\/p>\n<p>When pressed by The Federalist, an Air Force representative did not disclose the number of airmen who have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria or have begun the process of voluntary separation but said that the branch &ldquo;updated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.af.mil\/News\/Article-Display\/Article\/4180770\/department-of-the-air-force-updated-guidance-on-implementing-policy-on-prioriti\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">guidance<\/a> on Implementing Policy on Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness on May 9.&rdquo; The official also disclosed that there &ldquo;were no Air Force or Space Force waivers requested&rdquo; from service members self-identifying as being diagnosed with gender dysphoria<strong> <\/strong>during the time between a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-battles-forum-shopping-amid-liberal-lawsuit-surge-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Trump battles \u2018forum shopping\u2019 amid liberal lawsuit surge - Washington Examiner\">lower court judge&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s March injunction blocking the administration&rsquo;s policy and the Supreme Court staying the injunction last week.<\/p>\n<p>A Marine Corps spokesman told The Federalist that the branch &ldquo;does not track the number of individuals diagnosed with gender dysphoria.&rdquo; When pressed on how many gender dysphoric Marines have begun the process of voluntary separation, the official said, &ldquo;We are awaiting further guidance from the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Assistant Secretary of the Navy regarding the implementation of this process. More to follow as details are clarified.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Army acknowledged The Federalist&rsquo;s inquiry but declined to comment. The Navy did not respond to The Federalist&rsquo;s request for comment. <\/p>\n<p>While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/a-daily-wire-investigation-are-there-really-15k-trans-military-members\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reporting<\/a> from real journalists like The Daily Wire&rsquo;s Mary Margaret Olohan cast doubt about the validity of the claim that there are 15,000 trans-identifying troops in the military, legacy media leftists seemingly had no problem regurgitating the debunked figure.<\/p>\n<p>Several weeks after Trump&rsquo;s November victory, the U.K.-based Independent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/americas\/us-politics\/trump-transgender-military-policy-b2652956.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">asserted<\/a> without evidence, &ldquo;There are roughly 15,000 trans people serving in the nation&rsquo;s armed forces at a time when branches are suffering from recruitment shortfalls.&rdquo; The outlet&rsquo;s so-called &ldquo;reporting&rdquo; was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.military.com\/daily-news\/2024\/11\/25\/trump-reportedly-weighs-immediate-discharge-of-all-transgender-troops-heres-what-would-mean.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">cited<\/a> by the left-wing Miltary.com in an article it published the same day. <\/p>\n<p>The New York Times and Washington Post are also among those to republish the 15,000 &ldquo;trans&rdquo; troops number. <\/p>\n<p>In January, the former <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/28\/us\/politics\/trump-transgender-troops.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">referenced<\/a> figures from the &ldquo;transgender service member advocacy group&rdquo; known as SPARTA Pride, which estimated there are &ldquo;15,000 to 25,000 transgender troops serving.&rdquo; The latter <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national-security\/2025\/01\/28\/trump-transgender-troops-military-hegseth\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">cited<\/a> claims from so-called &ldquo;[a]dvocates for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/someone-please-teach-the-birds-bees-to-the-washington-post\/\" title=\"Someone Please Teach The Birds &amp; Bees To The Washington Post\">transgender people&#038;rdquo<\/a>; when noting the 15,000 number in an article published that same month. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/donald-trump\/trump-announces-ban-transgender-people-serving-military-n786621\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NBC News<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/baltimore\/news\/transgender-military-officer-uphold-ban-bree-fram-trump-air-force\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CBS News<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/shots-health-news\/2025\/01\/28\/nx-s1-5277106\/trump-executive-order-transgender-military\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NPR<\/a> have also pushed the debunked 15,000 figure in recent years and weeks.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-american-freedom-convoy-set-to-launch-on-march-1\/\" title=\"Exclusive: \u2018American Freedom Convoy\u2019 Set To Launch On March 1\">state content writer<\/a> 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<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/defense-department\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Defense Department<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/democrat-lies\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Democrat lies<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/media-lies\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Media lies<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/military\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">military<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/military-readiness\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">military readiness<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pentagon\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Pentagon<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/propaganda-press\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">propaganda press<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/transgender-troops\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">transgender troops<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/transgenderism\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">transgenderism<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the weeks around Trump&#8217;s inauguration, media repeatedly claimed 15,000 trans-identifying individuals would be removed from the military under his leadership<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2434125,"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\/05\/Trans-flag.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[4856,4188,4505,50738,4019],"class_list":["post-2434124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-claims","tag-media","tag-military","tag-misinformation-2","tag-transgender"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Trans-flag.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2434124","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=2434124"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2434124\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2434128,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2434124\/revisions\/2434128"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2434125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2434124"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2434124"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2434124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}