Senior Military Leaders Gather At Marine Corps Base Quantico
7 weeks ago
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth slammed "fat generals" and diversity initiatives that he said led to decades of decay in the military and told a rare gathering of commanders on Tuesday they should resign if they don't support his agenda.
"Foolish and reckless political leaders set the wrong compass heading and we lost our way. We became the 'Woke Department,'" Hegseth said as he kicked off the event in Quantico, Virginia. "But not anymore," he said.
Addressing a room full of America's top generals and admirals, summoned from around the world without explanation last week, Hegseth promised sweeping changes to how discrimination complaints are handled and how accusations of wrongdoing are investigated at the Pentagon.
He said all fitness tests would be set to male benchmarks only and emphasized the importance of grooming standards. "The era of unprofessional appearance is over. No more beardos," Hegseth told the audience, which sat in silence.
The U.S. military is meant to be apolitical, loyal to the U.S. Constitution and independent of any party or political movement.
Javed Ali of the University of Michigan, who worked as a senior counter terrorism expert in the government said, the military is also reviewing how to brace for the future. "How do you draw on the lessons of the last 20 plus years, and even going back to Vietnam or other conflicts that were at best those were stalemates."
The Pentagon has undergone eight months of blistering changes since Trump took office, including firings, banning books from academy libraries and ordering lethal strikes on suspected drug boats off Venezuela.
Earlier this month, Trump signed an executive order to rename the Department of Defense the "Department of War," reverting to a title it held until after World War Two when officials sought to emphasize the Pentagon's role in preventing conflict. The name change will require congressional approval.
"Foolish and reckless political leaders set the wrong compass heading and we lost our way. We became the 'Woke Department,'" Hegseth said as he kicked off the event in Quantico, Virginia. "But not anymore," he said.
Addressing a room full of America's top generals and admirals, summoned from around the world without explanation last week, Hegseth promised sweeping changes to how discrimination complaints are handled and how accusations of wrongdoing are investigated at the Pentagon.
He said all fitness tests would be set to male benchmarks only and emphasized the importance of grooming standards. "The era of unprofessional appearance is over. No more beardos," Hegseth told the audience, which sat in silence.
The U.S. military is meant to be apolitical, loyal to the U.S. Constitution and independent of any party or political movement.
Javed Ali of the University of Michigan, who worked as a senior counter terrorism expert in the government said, the military is also reviewing how to brace for the future. "How do you draw on the lessons of the last 20 plus years, and even going back to Vietnam or other conflicts that were at best those were stalemates."
The Pentagon has undergone eight months of blistering changes since Trump took office, including firings, banning books from academy libraries and ordering lethal strikes on suspected drug boats off Venezuela.
Earlier this month, Trump signed an executive order to rename the Department of Defense the "Department of War," reverting to a title it held until after World War Two when officials sought to emphasize the Pentagon's role in preventing conflict. The name change will require congressional approval.
