Judge
Ana
Reyes
heard
the
challenge
to
Trump’s
transgender
service
member
ban.
It
did
not
go
well
for
the
DOJ.
Technically,
it
wasn’t
a
“ban”
but
an
executive
order
titled
“Prioritizing
Military
Excellence
and
Readiness.”
Though
instead
of
canceling
the
F-35
or
anything
that
might
actually
improve
military
readiness,
the
order
calls
out
“gender
identity
inconsistent
with
an
individual’s
sex”
as
incompatible
with
military
service
because
it
would
violate
“a
soldier’s
commitment
to
an
honorable,
truthful,
and
disciplined
lifestyle,
even
in
one’s
personal
life.”
This
screwball
honor
code
articulation
represents
the
work
of
Trump’s
remedial
school
attorneys
to
circumvent
the
legal
obstacles
of
a
ban.
It’s
like
Orwellian
newspeak
but
much
more
stupid.
Judge
Reyes
did
not
appreciate
this
coy
effort
to
disguise
the
ban
as
something
else,
noting
that
if
the
infamously
unable
to
shut
up
president
were
asked
directly
if
this
was
intended
as
a
ban
on
transgender
service
members
he’d
say
“of
course,
it
is”
—
a
phrasing
that’s
probably
too
coherent
for
him,
but
the
sentiment
is
what
matters.
But
Reyes
dismantled
the
DOJ’s
effort
to
downplay
gender
animus
in
a
scathing
back-and-forth
with
DOJ
attorney
Jason
Lynch,
whom
Chris
Geidner
notes
is
a
9-year
DOJ
veteran
out
of
UVA
Law.
Hold
onto
this
detail.
As
the
hearing
continued
to
plummet
into
lunacy,
Judge
Reyes
questioned
how
the
government
thought
it
could
avoid
showing
“animus”
by
recasting
the
ban
as
a
matter
of
the
service
members’
honor.
Of
all
the
roundabout
efforts
to
get
this
ban,
basing
it
on
accusations
of
dishonor
and
lying
seems
the
least
likely
to
get
there.
That
brought
us
to
the
following
exchange
(image
hat
tip
to
Michael
Paulauski
on
Bluesky):
See,
in
that
scenario,
I
would
simply
curl
up
into
a
ball
and
asked
to
be
left
at
the
defense
table
to
die.
This
whole
“being
Trump’s
personal
lawyer”
thing
isn’t
working
out
too
well
for
DOJ
staff.
I
know
the
job
market
is
flooded
with
DOJ
resignations
right
now,
but
it
might
be
time
to
get
out
of
this
case
before
the
stench
of
this
representation
hangs
onto
his
career
forever.
Joe
Patrice is
a
senior
editor
at
Above
the
Law
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
Feel
free
to email
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments.
Follow
him
on Twitter or
Bluesky
if
you’re
interested
in
law,
politics,
and
a
healthy
dose
of
college
sports
news.
Joe
also
serves
as
a
Managing
Director
at
RPN
Executive
Search.