According to a report by The Independent on Monday (Nov. 25), President-elect Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order that would ban transgender people from serving in the U.S. military, potentially as soon as his first day back in office. The publication added that there are currently about 15,000 from that demographic among its ranks. It was also stated that said division is facing recruitment challenges.

The embattled politician made good on the intent during his first term, when he signed that order into law. “After consultation with my generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. military,” Trump tweeted in 2019. “Our military must be focused on [a] decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that [transgenders] in the military would entail.”

Trump’s ban was subsequently overturned by his successor, President Joe Biden. “It is my conviction as commander-in-chief of the armed forces that gender identity should not be a bar to military service,” he wrote in a detailed statement. “Moreover, there is substantial evidence that allowing transgender individuals to serve in the military does not have any meaningful negative impact.”

Biden’s announcement continued, “In 2016, a meticulous, comprehensive study requested by the Department of Defense found that enabling transgender individuals to serve openly in the United States military would have only a minimal impact on military readiness and healthcare costs. The study also concluded that open transgender service has had no significant impact on operational effectiveness or unit cohesion in foreign militaries.”

Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s transition spokesperson and incoming White House press secretary, dismissed the aforementioned claim regarding the fate of transgender soldiers. “These unnamed sources are speculating and have no idea what they are actually talking about,” she said to The Independent. She added that “no policy should ever be deemed official unless it comes directly from President Trump or his authorized spokespeople.”