Hegseth told hundreds of military commanders at a hastily called gathering in Virginia that there would be new directives to ensure that the requirement for every position in combat \u201creturns to the highest male standard.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said that \u201cif that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it,\u201d while stressing that the military will continue to welcome women into its ranks.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want my son serving alongside troops who are out of shape, or in combat units with females who can\u2019t meet the same combat arms physical standards as men,\u201d he said. \u201cThis job is life and death. Standards must be met.\u201d<\/p>\n
The remarks rekindled\u00a0criticism of the defense secretary<\/a>\u00a0that arose after President Donald Trump nominated him to the post last year and renewed concerns about his approach to women in leadership and front-line roles. Hegseth\u2019s house-cleaning at the top ranks of the military has included\u00a0a disproportionate number of women,<\/a>\u00a0including an admiral and vice admiral in the Navy and the commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.<\/p>\n Several prominent women who are combat veterans pushed back on Hegseth\u2019s remarks to emphasize that women who serve in combat roles already are subjected to the same standards as men.\u00a0Those standards<\/a>\u00a0apply to specific combat special operations, infantry, armor, pararescue and other jobs regardless of age or gender.<\/p>\n Female veterans call out Hegseth<\/p>\n Elisa Cardnell, president of the Service Women\u2019s Action Network, said the standards have not been lowered for women serving in combat roles. She said the requirements for serving in the infantry, for example, are the same for men and women, whether it\u2019s carrying a certain amount of equipment or marching a certain distance.<\/p>\n Capt. Lory Manning, who served for more than 25 years in the Navy and at times commanded units of over 400 people, said skepticism about women\u2019s capabilities is nothing new. During her time in the Navy, the military expanded opportunities for women to serve in air, sea and some ground combat.<\/p>\n \u201cWomen have had to prove they were capable before positions became officially open,\u201d said Manning, whose responsibilities at one point also included oversight and evaluation of the Navy\u2019s physical fitness standards.<\/p>\n Manning said \u201cthere would have been some sort of uproar\u201d if women consistently failed to perform or compromised military standards throughout that time. She said the secretary seemed to conflate physical requirements with requirements for specific military roles.<\/p>\n \u201cHe hasn\u2019t changed anything basic with regards to women,\u201d she said of Hegseth. \u201cHe\u2019s just got it in his head that women are somehow cheating.\u201d<\/p>\n Amy McGrath, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel who was the first woman to fly an F-18 fighter jet in combat and\u00a0lost a Democratic challenge<\/a>\u00a0to Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell in 2020, said Hegseth continues to lie about women in the military.<\/p>\n \u201cHe claimed the military needs to \u2018return to the male standard\u2019 in combat jobs (of 1990!), but here\u2019s the truth: there has never been a separate male and female standard,\u201d she posted on X. \u201cWhen women entered combat roles, one standard was set, and we\u2019ve been meeting it ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic nominee for New Jersey governor who served as a Navy helicopter pilot, said Tuesday that what she had heard about the speech \u201ccomports with everything I\u2019ve seen from the most incompetent secretary of defense we\u2019ve ever had.\u201d<\/p>\n She questioned the decision to call generals and admirals from around the world for what she said amounts to a meeting \u201cjust to kind of show his tough guy creds.\u201d<\/p>\n Many Republican women show support<\/p>\n Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican and Iraq War combat veteran who grilled Hegseth during his nomination hearing in January before\u00a0providing a crucial confirmation vote<\/a>, said his comments Tuesday were \u201cappropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not worried about that,\u201d she said. \u201cSo there should be the same set of standards for combat arms. I think that\u2019s what he probably was referring to, combat arms.\u201d<\/p>\n Ernst noted, however, that women who go through Ranger School or into the infantry are already subjected to the same standards as men.<\/p>\n Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, the\u00a0first woman<\/a>\u00a0to graduate from The Citadel, said she likes Hegseth\u2019s approach, specifically his promises to get rid of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the military.<\/p>\n \u201cPresident Trump and Secretary Hegseth are right: the U.S. military isn\u2019t a playground for Left-Wing gender bending ideology. Our military is a fighting force that must return to mission-first readiness,\u201d the Republican told AP in a statement.<\/p>\n U.S. Rep. Sheri Biggs of South Carolina, a lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard, said she also supported Hegseth\u2019s efforts to change military culture.<\/p>\n Hegseth focused much of his address on eliminating what he has called \u201cwoke\u201d policies from the military, saying too many leaders have been promoted based on race, gender quotas and \u201chistoric firsts\u201d rather than qualifications. Any leader who disagrees with his approach should resign, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cReturning to standards that prioritize excellence and accountability puts America\u2019s security and our servicemembers where they belong \u2014 first,\u201d Biggs said in a statement.<\/p>\n Contributing: The Associated Press<\/a><\/p>\n Read more of Heather Bosch\u2019s stories\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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