{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://mcbride.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-mcbride-denounces-trump-administrations-discharge-transgender-troops-house", "Rep. McBride Denounces Trump Administration\u2019s Discharge of Transgender Troops on House Floor", "2025-07-21", "2025", "2025-07", "Democrat", "House", "DE", "Sarah McBride", "M001238", "mcbride.house.gov", "mcbride", "https://mcbride.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Today, Delaware\u2019s Congresswoman Sarah McBride (D-DE) delivered a speech on the House floor condemning the Trump Administration\u2019s removal of transgender service members from military service.\n\n\u201cThese are Americans who have served with honor, with distinction, and with unshakable patriotism,\u201d said Rep. McBride. \u201cBrave, honorable, and committed patriots, who have also dared to have the courage to say out loud that they are transgender. These are qualified, trained, and decorated service members. They have deployed into combat, flown missions overseas, and led troops through danger. And now, this administration is telling them that despite their qualifications and their exemplary quality of service, that they can no longer serve \u2013 simply because of how they express their gender. That message is immoral. It is unfair. And it is un-American.\u201d\n\nMcBride, who represents the Dover Air Force Base, a state with a proud military tradition, and thousands of active duty and retired service members, said the decision sends \u201cthe cruelest possible message to some of our most dedicated citizens: that their service is unwelcome.\u201d\n\nIn her remarks, McBride made clear that the Trump Administration\u2019s decision is not only discriminatory, but dangerously short-sighted. She underscored the exemplary record of transgender service members\u2014patriots who have led combat missions, trained future leaders, and earned top marks from their commanders. McBride condemned the policy as a reckless betrayal of military readiness, warning that it will \u201cweaken our military,\u201d \u201cwaste billions in taxpayer investments,\u201d and sacrifice decades of experience for the sake of a cynical political tool. By removing trained, decorated troops simply because of their gender identity, she argued, the administration is undermining national security and insulting the very values our military exists to protect.\n\n\u201cTo every transgender service member,\u201d McBride said, \u201cI salute you. I thank you. I see you. I honor you. And I will not stop fighting for a country that is truly worthy of your service.\u201d\n\nWatch the full speech here. The full transcript of Rep. McBride\u2019s speech is available below.\n\n\u201cThank you, Mr. Speaker,\n\n\u201cEarlier this month, I joined my neighbors across Delaware in celebrating the freedoms that define our nation\u2014freedoms made possible by those who have worn the uniform.\n\n\u201cIt is appalling that while families gathered under fireworks to honor that sacrifice, the Trump administration was all-too-quietly forcing out thousands of patriots from military service.\n\n\u201cThese are Americans who have served with honor, with distinction, and with unshakable patriotism. Brave, honorable, and committed patriots, who have also dared to have the courage to say out loud that they are transgender. These are qualified, trained, and decorated service members. They have deployed into combat, flown missions overseas, and led troops through danger. And now, this administration is telling them that despite their qualifications and their exemplary quality of service, that they can no longer serve\u2014simply because of how they express their gender.\n\n\u201cThat message is immoral. It is unfair. And it is un-American.\n\n\u201cI represent Delaware\u2019s at-large district, a district that includes thousands\u2014tens of thousands\u2014of active duty service members, veterans, and military families. In our state, service isn\u2019t abstract. It\u2019s personal. And we see every day what honor, discipline, and sacrifice looks like\u2014regardless of someone\u2019s gender identity.\n\n\u201cThese individuals met the same rigorous standards as their peers\u2014the same physical exams, the same screenings, the same background checks. And in many cases, under intense scrutiny, they didn\u2019t just meet those standards\u2014they exceeded them.\n\n\u201cTrans servicemembers are receiving glowing fitness reports and commendations. One was described by her commander as \u2018within the top 5% of officers I\u2019ve encountered in 18 years of military service.\u2019 Another, an aviator with 60 combat missions under her belt, earned the \u201cstrongest possible recommendation for promotion,\u2019 and I quote her commander directly who attested, \u2018People thrive under her leadership\u2019. A third, a noncommissioned officer and instructor, was called \u2018undoubtedly within the top 5% of NCOs I've worked with in my 22 years of service.\u2019\n\n\u201cIn a recent hearing the Secretary of Defense even commended these patriots, only to frantically retract his praise when he decided that their being transgender\u2014one small part of who these soldiers are\u2014somehow outweighed their years of proven high performance and service to this country.\n\n\u201cThese service members were just dismissed by this administration.\n\n\u201cThe most powerful aspect of our military, the thing that makes it unique against our adversaries, is that it is a Military of the people. In the United States, patriotism does not discriminate, and in this country, if you are willing to serve, to fight for our core beliefs, and to meet the standards, then we welcome you to stand with us, regardless of your race, religion, national origin, or any other aspect of who you are. Because you are an American, a patriot first.\n\n\u201cThis decision to remove proven patriots for no justification causes serious weakness to our force. It turns away proven courage. It wastes billions in taxpayer investment, decades of hard earned experience, and is a direct blow to readiness.\n\n\u201cBecause this decision isn\u2019t about readiness. It\u2019s not about discipline, or merit. And it\u2019s certainly not about cost.\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s about exclusion. It\u2019s about using identity as a wedge to divide and distract. It\u2019s a cynical ploy not sound policy\u2014and our military, which should never be a political tool, is paying the price.\n\n\u201cAcross Delaware\u2014from Georgetown to Wilmington\u2014I\u2019ve met transgender veterans who served this nation with distinction. Some stepped forward while hiding who they were, forced to choose between their truth and their country. Others served openly, when policy briefly aligned with principle. All of them, all of them, served with honor.\n\n\u201cThese are Americans asking to serve their country\u2014to put on the line their last full measure of devotion, just like generations before them. The least we can do is let them.\n\n\u201cWe are not made safer by sidelining qualified patriots. We are not made stronger by narrowing the ranks of who gets to serve. And we are not made freer by telling brave Americans that their truth disqualifies them from service.\n\n\u201cThis ban weakens our military. It betrays our values. And it sends the cruelest possible message to some of our most dedicated citizens: that their service is unwelcome. And that one identity matters more than what they\u2019ve done, what they have sacrificed, and what they fight for.\n\n\u201cI reject that message. To every transgender service member: I salute you. I thank you. I see you. I honor you. And I will not stop fighting for a country that is truly worthy of your service.\n\n\u201cThank you, Mr. Speaker, I yield back.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T14:40:33Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://mcbride.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-mcbride-denounces-trump-administrations-discharge-transgender-troops-house"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0067790281027555, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}