Veterans and retired officers sharply criticized Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after his address to more than 800 generals and admirals at Marine Corps Base Quantico on Tuesday. The secrecy-shrouded gathering drew backlash for both its timing, just before a government shutdown, and its tone.
Naveed Shah, an Army veteran and policy director for Common Defense, said, “The people in that room who have served for 20, 30-plus years in uniform do not need Pete Hegseth to tell them about warrior ethos.” Retired Army General Dana Pittard called the speech “insulting” and “egotistical,” particularly Hegseth’s claim that officers of color advanced through a “quota system.”
Trump followed Hegseth with partisan remarks referencing former President Biden and “the enemy within,” which Pittard said risked politicizing military leadership.
Hegseth also drew mixed responses for insisting women in combat roles meet identical fitness standards to men. Sally Roberts, a decorated veteran and athlete, said it could create fairness, while retired Navy pilot Amy McGrath countered, “There has never been a separate male and female standard … you can either do the job or you can’t.”
Other veterans said Hegseth’s focus on “lethality” was troubling when paired with Trump’s comments about deploying troops to U.S. cities.
Sources
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