House Republicans decided not to vote on an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2024 that would have required transgender men to enroll in the Selective Service System.
The amendment was proposed by Representative Tim Burchett, a Tennessee Republican. On his Facebook page, the congressman recently wrote that the proposal would require "any individual who identifies as a man to sign up for the selective service."
The House of Representatives, which has a GOP majority, voted on 80 amendments on Thursday, a significantly paired down amount from the 1,500 that were submitted. The vote on Thursday comes amid an ongoing discussion and controversy surrounding transgender individuals and transgender rights. Former President Donald Trump said in April that he would seek to ban gender-affirming care for minors if he was reelected in 2024. In addition, a number of Republican states have also sought to ban transgender medical care for children.
One amendment that didn't make it to the House floor for a vote was Burchett's, which would have required transgender individuals to register for the draft. In a tweet on Wednesday, Burchett showed that only two out of the five amendments he proposed were brought to the House floor for a vote.
"Unfortunately, the Pentagon has recently decided to prioritize political agendas that don't have anything to do with the national defense while the rest of the world laughs at us. I'm glad to see this bill preventing taxpayer dollars from funding ridiculous things like race-baiting trainings, transgender surgeries, and cross-state abortions," Burchett said in a statement on Friday afternoon that was posted to Twitter.
While speaking on the House floor on Tuesday, Burchett said, "If [the] Biden administration is so serious about prioritizing so-called equity, then no one should have a problem with my amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which would require anyone who identifies as a man to register for the Selective Service."
The representative continued: "If these folks want to be treated like men, they need to act like men. I don't support the woke agenda, as you know, I'm fully against it, but if Democrats want to play ball, then let's play some ball. Let's see what excuses they come up with opposing this plan."
Newsweek was directed to Burchett's comments on the House floor after reaching out to his office for comment via email.
According to the Selective Service System, the current registration requirement is based on "gender assigned at birth and not on gender identity or on gender reassignment."
"Individuals who are born male and changed their gender to female are still required to register. Individuals who are born female and changed their gender to male are not required to register," the Selective Service System states. "Until Congress amends the MSSA [Military Selective Service Act] or passes a separate law addressing transsexuals and gender identity, Selective Service must follow the intent of Congress when it required only males to register – the registration requirement is based on gender at birth."
In a statement, Selective Service Associate Director for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs, Micheal Migliara told Newsweek, "We would execute any changes to the law on the registration requirement as directed by the President and Congress."
Meanwhile when Trump was in office, he imposed restrictions on transgender people openly serving in the U.S. military. However, President Joe Biden signed an executive order shortly after taking office that reversed the restriction set in place by the former president.
