‘Just warriors’: Pete Hegseth says the U.S. army wants ‘no fatties’, and claims that his department is ‘color-blind, gender-neutral, and merit-based’

Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, spoke to troops on Wednesday at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia. The remarks came during his State of the Force speech. Mediaite published a portion of what he said.

In that portion, Hegseth said, “We are no longer the ‘woke department’ or the ‘weak department.’ Simple translation of that – no fatties, no t——s, no beardos, no weirdos, no wimps, no radicals. Just warriors. Just tough, ready, committed troops. The War Department, as you know, is color-blind, gender-neutral, and merit-based.”

He went on to quote the president as telling him, “Pete, central casting. I want central casting.” Hegseth then said, “The ideological clowns are out. The patriotic cowboys are in, with testosterone testing on top.” Mediaite also reported that he sent Army commanders an email saying he wanted only those who kept “impeccable grooming and uniform standards (no exception)” in the crowd.

Hegseth ties senior-rank cuts to what he calls accountability

Hegseth also talked about shrinking the number of generals and admirals. He called those reductions “an accomplishment” and criticized leaders who, in his words, “clung to the woke department.”

Fox News first reported the newest cuts on Tuesday. Those cuts would remove 20% of posts set aside for generals and admirals. That figure doubles an earlier 10% cut.

Former Army Secretary Dan Driscoll last month went straight to President Donald Trump, shortly before leaving the job, with concerns about Army leaders fired, pushed out, or passed over for promotion under Hegseth. Hegseth’s troubles have not stopped at the Pentagon, as Republican senators have called on Trump to fire him.

Hegseth’s previous State of the Force speech, Mediaite said, included Trump and was when Hegseth first promoted what he described as a new “warrior ethos.” In that earlier speech, he also criticized “fat generals and admirals.” Hegseth’s criticism of military leadership has drawn scrutiny, as he reportedly wanted to make a scapegoat of a decorated general, when given facts showing he was blameless, saying he didn’t care.  

This year, he said he believes “most” generals took his guidance “positively.” He then said, “Those generals who did not, who clung to the ‘woke department’ or seem to think civilian control of the military is simply a suggestion, well, they no longer work here.”

He gave his own count of the reductions, saying, “The number crunchers say we fired 10% of the generals and admirals across the force, and that number sounds about right. And I know, because I directed it, that we’ve also reduced the overall number of general officer slots by an additional 10%. So yes, 20% reduction across the board.”

He added, “Now, the media calls that a purge. I call it accountability and long overdue. And frankly, the bare minimum. As usual, what the media levels as an accusation, I wear as an accomplishment. You see, you can’t change a culture with the same people who enabled it.”