The Supreme Court just dropped a 6-3 bombshell that’s got the culture wars buzzing again.
In a decisive win for the Trump administration, the court temporarily greenlit a State Department policy mandating that passport applicants list their biological sex on new or renewed documents, overturning a Massachusetts lower court’s block on the rule while a class action lawsuit trudges on.
This policy, part of a broader push by President Trump through executive orders, aims to align federal rules with biological realities in contexts like passports, sports, and military service.
It’s a sharp reversal from the Biden administration’s approach, which had allowed an “X” gender marker on passports to reflect self-identified gender.
Now, the State Department is back to requiring what’s on your birth certificate, a move the Trump team sees as grounding policy in fact over feeling.
The majority opinion didn’t mince words, stating, “Displaying passport holders’ sex at birth no more offends equal protection principles than displaying their country of birth,” framing it as a neutral historical record (unsigned order).
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, in dissent, fired back with a plea for the plaintiffs, arguing, “The majority fails to spill any ink considering the plaintiffs, opting instead to intervene in the Government’s favor without equitable justification, and in a manner that permits harm to be inflicted on the most vulnerable party.”
That’s a heartfelt jab, but let’s be real—policy isn’t about personal expression; it’s about clarity and consistency for international travel documents.
The liberal trio on the bench stood firm against the ruling, but with a 6-3 split, their objections couldn’t sway the outcome.
Meanwhile, the class action suit, brought by a dozen transgender, nonbinary, and intersex individuals, isn’t over—it’s just warming up in the lower courts.
These plaintiffs argue passports should mirror the gender they live as, not the one assigned at birth, a position that clashes with the administration’s view of biological fact as the final word.
While their case continues, the Supreme Court’s interim nod to the policy means the State Department can enforce it for now, a clear win for Trump’s agenda.
Outside the Supreme Court, a rally supporting transgender care unfolded on June 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C., showing just how raw this issue remains for many.
Back in the legal arena, Attorney General Pam Bondi celebrated the decision on social media, noting the Department of Justice’s string of nearly two-dozen emergency docket victories this year alone.
It’s a reminder that while the culture may lean progressive, the courts are increasingly a firewall for traditionalist policies—and that’s no small thing in a nation so divided on questions of identity and governance.
