US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has confirmed plans to reduce the number of generals and admirals in the American military by 20%. During a speech delivered to lower-ranking troops at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia, on Wednesday, Hegseth outlined a new strategic direction for the Pentagon, emphasizing a focus on “training, readiness, accountability, discipline and lethality.”
Hegseth asserted that the military must move away from what he described as diversity-focused initiatives, promising that “the complainers, the ideologues and the poor performers are no longer in the driver’s seat.” He specifically stated that generals who prioritized “the woke department” or challenged civilian control of the military would no longer be employed by the department. In his address, he used inflammatory language to characterize the new standards, declaring that the military would no longer tolerate “fatties, trannies, beardos, weirdos, wimps” or “radicals.”
The defense secretary cited the USS Abraham Lincoln as a point of concern regarding morale and operational issues. The aircraft carrier was deployed for nearly nine months, with its crew spending 286 days at sea before disembarking in a Thai resort city on September 1. Hegseth noted that about 80% of the force onboard was retained following the deployment. He also addressed reports regarding the mental health of the crew, specifically mentioning that eight US navy personnel assigned to the Lincoln had attempted suicide during the deployment, which took place amid the ongoing US war on Iran. Hegseth characterized media coverage of these events as “disingenuous headlines” and “propaganda.”
In addition to personnel changes, Hegseth announced a new Pentagon initiative to study the “future of warfare.” This project will involve collaborations with former House speaker Newt Gingrich, Trump donor Palmer Luckey, and Elon Musk. Luckey’s firm, Anduril Industries, has secured billions in government defense contracts over the past year.
Hegseth also criticized Ivy League and liberal arts institutions, labeling them “DEI-worshipping woke factories,” despite being a graduate of Harvard and Princeton universities. The Pentagon plans to shift its educational pipeline toward institutions that align with conservative values, such as Hillsdale College and Liberty University, while also partnering with Mississippi University, Louisiana State University, and Tuskegee University.
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He added: “But it’s worth saying again, so the fake news understands it. We are no longer the woke department or the weak department. Simple translation of that: no fatties, no trannies, no beardos, no weirdos, no wimps, no radicals. Just warriors.”
