Congressman Trey Gowdy responds to a reporter's question about the Dept. of Defense's ban of transgenders from joining the U.S. Armed Forces

Question: How can President Trump claim to represent all U.S. citizens, regardless of sexual orientation, when he banned transgenders from joining the military? Isn't that discrimination? Trey Gowdy's Response: "Nobody has a 'right' to serve in the military. Nobody. What makes people think the military is an equal opportunity employer? It is very far from it, and for good reasons Let me cite a few: The military uses 'prejudice', regularly and consistently, to deny citizens from joining: for being too old or too young, too fat or too skinny, too tall or too short. Citizens are denied for having flat feet, or for missing (or additional) fingers." Clearly annoyed by the reporter's attempt to trap him with the question, he went on to explain: "By the way, poor eyesight will disqualify you, as well as bad teeth. Malnourished? Drug addiction? Bad back? Criminal history? Low IQ? Anxiety? Phobias? Hearing damage? Six arms? Hear voices in your head? Self-identification as a unicorn? Need a special access ramp for your wheelchair?" "Can't run the required course in the required time? Can't do the required number of push-ups? Not really a 'morning person' - and refuse to get out of bed before noon? All can be legitimate reasons for denial." "The military has one job: winning wars. Anything else is a distraction and a liability. Did someone just scream 'That isn't Fair!'? Well, war is VERY unfair. There are no exceptions made for being 'special', or 'challenged', or 'socially wonderful'." "YOU must change yourself to meet military standards...not the other way around." "I say it again: YOU don't change the military...you must change yourself. The military doesn't need to accommodate anyone with special issues The Military needs to win wars, and keep our country safe...PERIOD!" "If any of your personal issues are a liability that detracts from readiness or lethality - thank you for applying, and good luck in future endeavors." "....any other questions?"