President Trump recently recommended Rear Admiral Michael “Buzz” Donnelly, who is known for allowing drag shows on his ship when he was a captain, for promotion to command of the Navy’s 7th fleet.
“Adm[iral] Donnelly wasn’t in drag himself, but any military leader will tell you he is responsible for everything that happens under his command,” tweeted William Thibeau, director of the American Military Project at the Claremont Institute’s Center for the American Way of Life.
During his campaign, Trump promised to remove woke elements from the U.S. military and return the armed forces to their former glory. He even punctuated this campaign message with a video that spliced clips of Full Metal Jacket (the military under Trump) with clips of Admiral Rachel Levine and Navy drag queen “Harpy Daniels” (the military under Biden).
“Harpy Daniels,” whose real name is Joshua Kelly, is an active-duty sailor and drag performer who claims to be nonbinary. He was made the Navy’s digital ambassador in 2022. In 2017 and 2018, Kelly performed drag onboard the USS Ronald Reagan in Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Department events. Donnelly captained the ship at the time.
Now Donnelly is up for promotion, nominated by President Trump.
Donnelly is a career aviation officer who has previously commanded Strike Fighter Squadron 154, the USS Denver, the USS Ronald Reagan, Carrier Strike Group 5, and U.S. Naval Forces Korea. He is currently the head of the Chief of Naval Operations’ Air Warfare directorate. If promoted, he would command up to 70 ships, 150 aircraft, and more than 27,000 sailors.
While his experience is extensive, Donnelly’s allowance of drag aboard the USS Ronald Reagan is directly opposed to Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s vision for the U.S. military. Since his appointment, Hegseth has reinstituted Trump’s ban on recruiting trans-identifying individuals and is removing members of the military who identify as transgender.
Trump and Hegseth also promised to fire woke generals and admirals.
One of Donnelly’s previous promotions was temporarily blocked by Senator Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., in 2023 for unrelated reasons. Tuberville vowed to block all military nominations until the Pentagon rescinded a policy that offered paid leave and reimbursement of travel expenses for service members’ abortions, but lifted his block on all but the most senior promotions after significant pressure.
The White House did not respond to The Federalist’s request for comment. The Secretary of Defense’s Office referred The Federalist to Navy Public Affairs, which did not respond.
Jacqueline Annis-Levings is a correspondent for the Federalist. She is a rising junior at Patrick Henry College, where she is majoring in English.
