Energy Secretary Rick Perry said he supports President Trump’s decision to ban transgender individuals from serving in the military.
Perry made the declaration Friday, telling reporters that “I totally support” Trump’s decision, which surprised many when he announced the change in tweets Wednesday morning.
“I totally support the president in his decision,” the former Texas governor reportedly said. “The idea that the American people need to be paying for these types of operations to change your sex is not very wise from a standpoint of economics.”
“I think the president makes some good decisions about making sure that we have a force that is capable,” he said.
Perry, an Air Force veteran, is one of the few outspoken supporters of the change, which seemed to preempt an ongoing Department of Defense review and came amid concerns from lawmakers who wanted to ban Pentagon-funded sex reassignment operations in a new spending package on Capitol Hill.
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll on Saturday showed that a majority of Americans support the ability of transgender individuals to serve.
The Pentagon is waiting on the White House for guidance on the ban before implementing Trump’s plan.
