President Donald Trump told a gathering of top military brass on Tuesday that he wants forces to focus on threats within the U.S. — including a potential escalation of National Guard deployments.
“I told Pete, we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military National Guard,” he said, referring to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
The winding, hour-long speech was part of an unprecedented gathering of generals who flew in from around the globe on Hegseth’s orders, prompting confusion and safety concerns. The event wound up being a pair of televised speeches that hit on military readiness, limiting oversight, wars abroad and what Trump called “a war from within” over unauthorized immigration and crime.
“That’s only in recent decades have politicians somehow come to believe that our job is to police the far reaches of Kenya and Somalia while America is under invasion from within,” Trump said. “We’re under invasion from within, no different than a foreign enemy but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.”
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The president’s focus on military use within the U.S. comes as he continues to deploy troops in cities. He said troops would be in Chicago “very soon.” Trump’s deployments have tested the limits of the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts the military’s authority to conduct civilian law enforcement within the U.S.
But a theme of both the president’s and Hegseth’s remarks was rejecting criticism and complaints, including from servicemembers themselves.
Trump said the military would be “bringing back” a focus of fitness, ability, character and strength — not a focus on protecting “anyone’s feelings.”
Hegseth said military leaders would be freed from some of the constraints put in place through watchdogs that monitor complaints.
“I call it the ‘no more walking on eggshells’ policy,’” Hegseth said. “We are liberating commanders and NCOs. We are liberating you.”
Hegseth issued 10 directives, including an overhaul of the department’s “weaponized” equal opportunity and inspector general processes, saying there will be no more “frivolous,” or “anonymous” complaints that could sideline one’s career.
He promised to get rid of “dudes in dresses” and focus on a “merit”-based system that he said would almost certainly limit the number of women in combat roles.
Military leaders sat quietly before him as he spoke of culture changes, eliminating woke ideology, and criticized some military members, calling them “fat.”
“Frankly, it’s tiring to look out at combat formations or really any formation and see fat troops,” Hegseth said. “Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon.”
Now, he said, military members will be required to take two personal training tests a year as well as meet height and weight requirements, also twice a year. Hegseth said new guidelines would require all personnel not in special forces to shave their hair, lambasting “superficial personal expression.”
“No more beardos,” he said. “The era of unacceptable appearance is over.”
And for women, Hegseth said, they will be required to meet male combat standards. While this isn’t an attempt to prevent women from joining combat roles, he said, that could be the result.
“If women can make it, excellent. If not, it is what it is,” he said. “If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it. That is not the intent, but it could be the result,” also adding that this could eliminate “weak men,” from joining as well.
Hegseth acknowledged that many would not be receptive to these changes. He said they were free to go.
“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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