Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used an anti-transgender slur while speaking to the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets this week, drawing cheers from the crowd and reigniting criticism over his rhetoric toward transgender service members. The remark came during the opening stop of his “Send Me” tour, a recruitment-focused military speech series.
Pete Hegseth repeated the slur while addressing Texas A&M Corps of Cadets on the first stop of his “Send Me” tour
Hegseth told cadets that the U.S. military now operates on merit alone. He listed what he described as completed rollbacks: DEI offices abolished, quotas eliminated, and social experiments ended. Then he added, “No more trannies, just training.” Cadets cheered and applauded. Hegseth raised an eyebrow, smirked, and asked, “Makes sense, right?” before letting out a chuckle.
The Defense Secretary went on to say the military is finished with “that garbage,” arguing that a combat zone ignores pronouns and identity politics. He described the Department of Defense as “colorblind, gender neutral and merit-based.”
Pete Hegseth used similar language on August 17 at the Iowa State Fair, where he endorsed Iowa Rep. Zach Nunn. His Texas A&M speech repeated much of that address, praising “training, lethality, accountability, discipline and readiness” while targeting transgender people. The pattern suggests Hegseth now treats the slur as a standard line in his military speech repertoire, not an off-the-cuff slip.
Moreover, Hegseth’s words track with his actions since taking office. Within weeks of his confirmation, he reinstated the ban on transgender people joining the military, acting on Trump’s directive. The Pentagon then widened the policy. Officials also paused gender-transition procedures for active personnel.
Courts have pushed back. In June, a federal appeals court panel ruled the ban likely violates the Constitution. The Supreme Court has allowed enforcement to continue while litigation proceeds. In late August, the Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to let the Pentagon enforce the ban fully. The justices will likely decide this fall whether to review it.
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