President-elect Joe Biden has chosen a transgender veteran to be part of the transition team at the Department of Defense.
Shawn Skelly previously worked in the Obama administration in multiple defense and transportation roles, and became the first transgender veteran to be appointed by a president in 2013.
Skelly’s appointment comes as the Trump administration has banned transgender people from serving in the military under their self-identified gender. The ban is still being battled in court, but Biden has signaled that he plans to overturn the executive order after he’s sworn in as president on Jan. 20.
Skelly has worked as an acquisition analyst at CACI International, Inc., an international IT consultancy firm, for the past two years, according to a LinkedIn bio.
Skelly is also vice president at Out in National Security, an advocacy organization for LGBTQ+ national security professionals, according to their website.
