Landry Rhodes
Former Fox News presenter Pete Hegseth has caused
controversy lately as recent lines from his latest book
revealed criticisms of gay men openly serving in the armed
forces. Hegseth was asked by reporters on Thursday (Dec
12) if he believes gay people should be allowed to serve in
the military, to which he responded simply, “Yes.” However
many people have expressed doubt to this idea, given
his previous record of numerous derogatory statements
against the queer community, dating as recently to his 2024
book, “The War on Warriors,” released this past June.
In the autobiography, Hegseth repeatedly criticized the
repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy,
calling it a “Marxist plot” to promote social justice over
military effectiveness.
Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, or DADT, was a military directive
ordered by President Clinton in 1993 prohibiting
personnel from discriminating against soldiers based on
their sexual orientation, however barred openly gay people
from serving in the military. Essentially, Don’t Tell anyone
about your Sexual Orientation, and they Don’t Ask about
yours. After numerous campaigns from LGBTQ activists,
the directive was repealed in 2011 by President Obama.
Following the repeal, Hegseth went across conservative
media to refer to the repeal as a “breach in the wire,”
that would lead to social equality taking precedence over
military operations. “What you’re seeing is a military
right now that is more interested in social engineering
led by [Obama] than they are in war fighting,” he said in
comments first reported by Meidas News. “So as a result,
through ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ and women in the military
and these standards, they’re going to inevitably start to
erode standards because they want that one female special
operator, that one female Green Beret, that one female
Army Ranger, that one female Navy SEAL.”
Following the November elections, President-elect Donald Trump
nominated Hegseth to serve as Secretary of Defense, praising the
conservative commentator as “tough, smart, and a true
believer in America First” in a statement announcing
his pick. “Our military will be great again, and America
will never back down.” Hegseth has previously served in
Afghanistan and Iraq and left the National Guard as a
major in 2021, though if confirmed he would be the least
experienced Secretary of Defense dating back to Henry
Knox, the first Secretary of War nominated in 1785.
“The job of Secretary of Defense should not be an
entry-level position, and I question President-elect Trump’s
choice of a television news host to take on this immensely
important role,” House Armed Services Committee Ranking
Member Adam Smith, D-Wash., said in a statement to NPR.
“While I respect and admire Mr. Hegseth’s military service, I
am concerned about his inexperience given the security
challenges we face around the world.”
But his comments regarding the LGBT+ community and
the subsequent attacks on what he and other conservatives
deem as “woke” are the most troubling for some. In an
episode of the Ben Shapiro Show this summer, Hegseth
claimed that “a lot of people” who initially supported
the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” now regret their
involvement in the policy change, citing one example of an
anonymous gay soldier who says he now regrets supporting
the repeal of DADT because it opened the door to a “trans
agenda” in the military. Both Hegseth and Trump have
repeatedly called for banning transgender people from
serving in the military, a policy that was in place under
Trump’s first administration before being reversed by
President Biden. Now it is likely that the return of the new
administration will expand upon this ban, especially given
Hegseth’s more recent comments including women.
In a recent episode of the Shawn Ryan Show, Hegseth
went further into his criticisms of more social justice-
oriented programs in the military. “I’m straight up just
saying, we should not have women in combat roles,”
Hegseth said on the podcast. “It hasn’t made us more
effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting
more complicated.” When asked by CNN Wednesday
about his past comments on women in combat roles,
Hegseth said he supports “all women serving in our
military.” He didn’t answer when asked if he thinks getting
rid of “don’t ask, don’t tell” was a mistake.
In a comment to CNN, a Trump transition spokesperson
declined to say what specific policies Hegseth might
pursue as secretary of defense, including whether he would
reinstate “don’t ask, don’t tell” or implement changes to
current standards. “Like President Trump, Pete wants to
see the U.S. military focus on being the world’s strongest
fighting force – not on cultural and social issues. Bottom
line: If you can meet the standards, you can serve,” the
spokesperson said. “But given the threats we face, our
priorities shouldn’t be lowering standards and wasting
taxpayer money to meet arbitrary social quotas – our
priorities should be readiness and lethality.”
