Attorneys general for 18 states and the District of Columbia have sent the Senate and House Armed Services Committees a clear message: President Trump’s ban on transgender service members is discriminatory and, despite the President’s claims otherwise, is actually harmful to military readiness.

“Transgender service members fill a number of critical military roles. Retaining these talented service members strengthens — not weakens — our military readiness,” the joint letter, spearheaded by Hawaii AG Douglas Chin, reads.

“The members of our Armed Forces put their lives on the line to protect freedom for all Americans. Thousands of transgender Americans serve in uniform today. This policy tells them, ‘you are not welcome here.’ The decision to oust honorable, well-trained, and patriotic service members based on nothing more than their gender identity is undiluted discrimination and therefore discrimination and therefore indefensible. We urge that this newly announced policy be immediately reversed.”

The letter was signed by the attorneys general from Hawaii, New York, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Washington D.C.