John McCain slams Trump's tweeted ban on transgender individuals serving in the military

John McCain.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) released a statement Wednesday dissecting President Trump's tweeted ban on transgender individuals serving in the military. "The president's tweet this morning ... is yet another example of why major policy announcements should not be made via Twitter," wrote McCain, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.

McCain knocked Trump for his "unclear" statement, indicating the president failed to acknowledge that the Department of Defense "has already decided to allow currently-serving transgender individuals to stay in the military." "Any American who meets current medical and readiness standards should be allowed to continue serving," McCain wrote. "We should all be guided by the principle that any American who wants to serve our country and is able to meet the standards should have the opportunity to do so — and should be treated as the patriots they are."

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Kimberly Alters

Kimberly Alters is the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.