Secretary of War Pete Hegseth unveiled a new philosophy for his department.
Hegseth spoke to military leaders Tuesday at the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia,
“We embrace the War Department, and we must,” Hegseth said.
“We are preparing everyday to win, not just to defend. Defense is something you do all the time. It’s inherently reactionary and can lead to overuse, overreach, and mission creep,” Hegseth said.
“We also don’t fight with stupid rules of engagement,” he added. “We untie the hands of our warfighters to intimidate, demoralize, hunt, and kill the enemies of our country.”
He continued by saying the department veered off course by becoming “woke.”
There will be “no more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement,” Hegseth said.
“You kill people and break things for a living,” Hegseth continued.
“We lost our way, and we became the ‘woke’ department, but not anymore,” he said.
“If the words I’m speaking today are making your heart sink, then you should do the honorable thing and resign,” he said.
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Military standards will be higher and will be gender-neutral. Hegseth said.
“War does not care if you’re a man or a woman, neither does the enemy,” Hegseth said.
“We very much value the impact of female troops — our female officers and NCOs are the absolute best in the world. But when it comes to any job that requires physical power to perform in combat, those physical standards must be high and gender-neutral,” he said.
“If women can make it, excellent. If not, it is what it is. If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it. That is not the intent, but it could be the result.”
He added some “weak men won’t qualify” either.
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Hegseth also spoke about the new grooming standards for troops.
“We’re going to cut our hair, shave our beards and adhere to standards,” Hegseth said “It’s like the broken windows theory of policing. It’s like, you let the small stuff go, the big stuff eventually goes. … If you want a beard, you can join special forces. If not, then shave.”
“The era of unprofessional appearance is over,” Hegseth said.
