‘WELCOME TO THE WAR DEPARTMENT’: Pacing back and forth in front of a giant American flag backdrop reminiscent of the opening scene of the movie “Patton,” and speaking to an audience featuring more stars than visible in the night sky over Washington, newly-rebranded War Secretary Pete Hegseth delivered a ripsnorting, barn burner of a speech sharing his dream of a bad-ass American military dominated by men, where women are welcomed only if they can match the men in physical strength and stamina.
“If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it. That is not the intent, but it could be the result. So be it,” Hegseth said, describing a warrior ethos where he-men rule, and weaklings, fatties, and “males who think they’re female” are not welcomed. “Weak men won’t qualify because we’re not playing games. This is combat. This is life or death,” he said. “It’s tiring to look out at combat formations, or really, any formation, and see fat troops. Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon and leading commands around the country and the world. It’s a bad look. It is bad, and it’s not who we are.”
Hegseth envisions a lean, mean fighting machine, where the men are clean-shaven, their physiques perfect, and basic training is “scary, tough, and disciplined.”
“We’re empowering drill sergeants to instill healthy fear in new recruits, ensuring that future warfighters are forged,” he said, describing a military culture separate and distinct from the rest of America. “You are not civilians. You are set apart for a distinct purpose … You kill people and break things for a living. You are not politically correct and don’t necessarily belong always in polite society.”
SHADES OF ‘A FEW GOOD MEN’: The fictional Col. Nathan Jessup, played masterfully by Jack Nicholson in the 1992 movie A Few Good Men, would find himself right at home in the military of Pete Hegseth, and in fact would likely have not been court martialed for ordering the “Code Red” on Santiago, judged to be a “substandard Marine.”
Hegseth wants commanders who can yell and curse, and drill sergeants who can rough up recruits, if necessary, using what he called “tried and true methods,” to forge them into warriors. “Yes, they can shark attack, they can toss bunks, they can swear, and yes, they can put their hands on a recruit.”
These are things that might have been called “bullying and hazing” and labeled “toxic leadership,” but no more. “We’re undertaking a full review of the department’s definitions of so-called toxic leadership, bullying, and hazing.” That would be fine with Col. Jessup, who, like Hegseth, had a disdain for the so-called elites, who frowned on hazing.
At one point in the movie, Jessup said to a Navy JAG Corps lieutenant played by Tom Cruise, “I want you to stand there in your faggoty white uniform, and with your Harvard mouth extend me some f***ing courtesy.” Later, in the famous “You Can’t Handle the Truth” scene, his character expands on his contempt for military justice. “I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it!”
At Quantico, before hundreds of admirals and generals, Hegseth, who attended Princeton and Harvard, said something very similar. “The Ivy League faculty lounges will never understand us, and that’s OK because they could never do what you do. The media will mischaracterize us, and that’s OK because deep down, they know the reason they can do what they do is you. In this profession, you feel comfortable inside the violence so that our citizens could live peacefully.”
One of Hegseth’s first moves was firing the senior lawyers who advised commanders about what was legal under the law of armed conflict.
CHANNELING PATTON: Aside from the American flag backdrop, there were times during his presentation that Hegseth seemed to be channeling World War II Gen. George Patton, known for not mincing words and punctuating his remarks to the troops with unabashed profanity.
“No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses. No more climate change worship, no more division distraction or gender delusions, no more debris. As I’ve said before, and will say again, we are done with that s***,” Hegseth said, accusing a generation of “foolish and reckless political leaders” of turning the War Department into the “woke department.”
Hegseth cited Patton and Gulf War Commander Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf as role models, as opposed to the wimpy woke commanders of the Biden era, who he said included Joint Chiefs Chairman Army Gen. Mark Milley, Central Commander Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, and Army Vice Chief Gen. Peter Chiarelli.
He also explained how he decided which generals and admirals to fire, and promised to fire some more. “My job has been to determine which leaders simply did what they must to answer the prerogatives of civilian leadership and which leaders are truly invested in the woke department and, therefore, incapable of embracing the War Department,” he said. “My approach has been simple: When in doubt, assess the situation, follow your gut, and if it’s the best for the military, make a change … It’s nearly impossible to change a culture with the same people who helped create, or even benefited from that culture.”
Hegseth began his remarks by saying, “Welcome to the War Department, because the era of the Department of Defense is over.” Near the end of his speech, he warned the senior military leaders to embrace the change or step aside.
“You are hereby liberated to be an apolitical, hard-charging, no-nonsense constitutional leader that you joined the military to be,” he said. He prefaced that with the admonition, “If the words I’m speaking today are making your heart sink, then you should do the honorable thing and resign.”
You can watch the entire speech here, or read the transcript here.
HEGSETH PLEDGES TO RESHAPE WAR DEPARTMENT AFTER ‘DECADES OF DECAY’
Good Wednesday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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HAPPENING TODAY: WELCOME TO THE SHUTDOWN: Nobody blinked, and here we are. Both the Republican “clean” continuing resolution — which had no political riders — and the Democratic alternative CR —which would have restored Obamacare subsidies for millions of Americans — went down to defeat in the Senate last night.
As of this morning, hundreds of thousands of federal employees, including civilians at the War Department, are reporting to work only to complete the shutdown process and leave for the day, uncertain when or if they will come back, as President Donald Trump has made veiled threats to use the temporary closure to eliminate what he called “Democrats’” jobs.
“When you shut it down, you have to do layoffs. So we’d be laying off a lot of people that are going to be very affected. And they’re Democrats. They’re going to be Democrats,” Trump said hours before time ran out at midnight. “But a lot of good can come down from shutdowns. We can get rid of a lot of things that we didn’t want, and they’d be Democrat things.”
“We can do things during the shutdown that are irreversible, that are bad for them and irreversible by them, like cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like,” Trump said earlier in the day. “You all know [OMB Director] Russell Vought. He’s become very popular recently because he can trim the budget to a level that you couldn’t do any other way.”
“Because of the shutdown, we can do things medically and other ways, including benefits. We can cut large numbers of people out. We don’t want to do that, but we don’t want fraud, waste, and abuse. And you know, we’re cutting that.”
The Pentagon posted shutdown guidance on its website, stating, “Military personnel will continue in a normal duty status, without pay, until such time as a continuing resolution or appropriations are passed by Congress and signed into law. Civilian personnel not engaged in excepted activities will be placed in a non-work, non-pay status.”
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ENTERS SHUTDOWN AFTER CONGRESS LETS FUNDING EXPIRE
FOR DOW, NO WORK, NO PAY? In shutdowns past, “nonessential” federal workers, who were furloughed and must stay home, typically got full back pay once Congress restored government funding. However, guidance posted by the Pentagon on its home page indicated that civilian DOW workers who are not deemed essential will not be eligible for reimbursement after the shutdown.
This would be contrary to the spirit of a 2019 law, signed by Trump, that specified federal employees automatically receive back pay when a shutdown ends.
“Military personnel will continue in a normal duty status, without pay, until such time as a continuing resolution or appropriations are passed by Congress and signed into law,” the guidance read, while “Civilian personnel not engaged in excepted activities will be placed in a non-work, non-pay status.”
THUNE HOPEFUL GOP WILL PICK UP ENOUGH DEMOCRATIC VOTES TO REOPEN GOVERNMENT
TRUMP: ‘THE ENEMY FROM WITHIN’: In a 71-minute-long rambling speech, delivered in a relaxed, almost lethargic style, President Trump followed his defense secretary in addressing the stone-faced audience of senior officers gathered at the Quantico Marine base.
Trump seemed taken aback by the fact that the studiously apolitical generals and admirals didn’t clap when he took the stage. “I have never walked into a room so silent before,” Trump said. “If you want to applaud, you applaud,” he said. They didn’t. “If you don’t like what I’m saying, you can leave the room. Of course, there goes your rank, and there goes your future,” he joked, which did elicit a low chuckle from the officers decked out in their dress uniforms.
Trump, as is his wont, read languidly from the teleprompter, interspersing the prepared remarks with various off-the-cuff ruminations and anecdotes, including a discourse on “ugly” warships, (“I’m a very aesthetic person, and I don’t like some of the ships you’re doing aesthetically.”), and the beauty of his distinctive signature. (“I love my signature, I really do.”)
But the part of his remarks that drew the most attention was when he told the military leaders they should expect to use their troops to “straighten out” crime-ridden American cities, including San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and Portland.
“They’re very unsafe places, and we’re going to straighten them out one by one. And this is going to be a major part for some of the people in this room,” Trump said. “That’s a war too. It’s a war from within.”
“Last month, I signed an executive order to provide training for quick reaction forces that can help quell civil disturbances. This is going to be a big thing for the people in this room because it’s the enemy from within, and we have to handle it before it gets out of control. It won’t get out of control, once you’re involved,” he said.
“It’s really a very important mission. And I told Pete we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military, National Guard,” he continued. “We’re under invasion from within. No different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways because they don’t wear uniforms. At least when they’re wearing a uniform, you can take them out.”
TRUMP SAYS HE TOLD HEGSETH MILITARY SHOULD USE US CITIES AS ‘TRAINING GROUNDS’
POSSE COMITATUS, BE DAMNED: President Trump seemed unconcerned that one federal court has already ruled his deployment of troops to Los Angeles was unconstitutional and violated the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, which specifically prohibits federal troops from participating in civilian law enforcement.
“President Trump’s remarks offered no strategy, no operational guidance, and no plan to address real threats,” Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), senior Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, said in a statement. “His reckless suggestion that American cities be used as ‘training grounds’ for U.S. troops is a dangerous assault on our democracy, treating our own communities as war zones and our citizens as enemies.”
“It’s horrifying, and it should send chills down the bones, the spines of every American. This is not the way that our U.S. military is supposed to be used,” Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), an Air Force veteran and member of the Armed Services Committee, said on CNN.
“On the Armed Services Committee, many of us put forward suggestions, amendments to the NDAA that suggested how we should properly use our military. Those were all denied a proper debate, and they were all denied a vote,” Houlahan said. “And here we stand with our men and women being used in our own cities against our own citizens. And that should not be anything that anyone should tolerate, regardless of their party.”
“President Trump’s talking about actually employing the military against American citizens. It’s that this is not correct. It’s not proper. It’s not necessary,” said former Supreme NATO Commander, retired Army Gen. Wes Clark.
“The general lesson I’ve learned is that when you think Donald Trump is going to do something bad, he’ll probably do something worse. And I think that could play out here,” said Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA), a frequent Trump critic. “I mean, we’ve already seen him deploy troops to American cities in ways that have been declared illegal, declared unconstitutional. And he doesn’t seem deterred one bit.”
PENTAGON WILL NOT FURLOUGH MILITARY TROOPS STATIONED AT US-MEXICO BORDER
ZELENSKY: ZAPORIZHZHIA NUCLEAR PLANT AT RISK: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is warning the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is at serious risk of a nuclear disaster and is blaming Russia for failing to keep the facility supplied with electricity so its cooling pumps can operate.
“Because of Russian shelling, the plant has been cut off from power, disconnected from the electrical grid, and is being supplied with electricity by diesel generators,” Zelensky said in a video address. “This is extraordinary. The generators and the plant were not designed for this, have never operated in this mode for long, and we already have information that one generator has failed. It is Russian shelling that prevents repair of the power lines to the plant and the restoration of basic safety.”
“Europe’s largest nuclear power plant has been without external power for more than a week now, which is by far the longest-lasting such event during more than three and a half years of war. I’m in constant contact with the two sides with the aim to enable the plant’s swift re-connection to the electricity grid,” International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi, said in a statement. “While the plant is currently coping thanks to its emergency diesel generators — the last line of defence — and there is no immediate danger as long as they keep working, it is clearly not a sustainable situation in terms of nuclear safety.”
“Neither side would benefit from a nuclear accident,” Grossi said.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Hegseth pledges to reshape War Department after ‘decades of decay’
Washington Examiner: Trump says he told Hegseth military should use US cities as ‘training grounds’
Washington Examiner: Federal government enters shutdown after Congress lets funding expire
Washington Examiner: Pentagon will not furlough military troops stationed at US-Mexico border
Washington Examiner: Federal agencies release government shutdown closure plans: What to know
Washington Examiner: US to deport hundreds of Iranians after reaching agreement with Tehran
AP: Pete Hegseth had a lot to say when he summoned military leaders. Here are some facts and context
Washington Post: Hegseth to upend troops’ access to watchdog, whistleblower complaints
Washington Post: Hegseth wants to return the military to 1990 — a dark time in its history
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Inside the Room for Trump and Hegseth’s Speeches to Top Military Brass
Defense One: Shutdown Would Curtail Long-Term Intelligence Work at DOD
New York Times: Moscow Indicates Retaliation if Europe Uses Russian Assets for Ukraine
Task & Purpose: Air Force Has the Highest Number of Potential Recruits on Record
AP: Judge finds the Trump administration unconstitutionally targeted noncitizens over Gaza war protests
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Wilsbach Nominated to Be Next Air Force Chief
Breaking Defense: SASC Dems Skeptical of Golden Dome Price, Feasibility
The War Zone: F-47 ‘Phoenix’ Patch Authentic, Still a Work in Progress, US Air Force Confirms
Wall Street Journal: How Arctic Soldiers Train for What They Fear Most: Warm Weather
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Space Force Eyes Aggressor Satellites to Add Realism to Test and Training
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Long-Delayed Space C2 System Ready for Operations
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Lt. Col. George Hardy, Last Tuskegee Combat Pilot in WWII, Dies at 100
Yonhap: S Korea Selects US Firm L3Harris for Airborne Control Aircraft Procurement
Breaking Defense: Opinion: Forge Ahead with the Sentinel ICBM, But Consider Making It Mobile
THE CALENDAR:
WEDNESDAY | OCTOBER 1
9 a.m. — International Institute for Strategic Studies virtual discussion: “Tracking the Components of Missiles and UAVs Used by Russia in Ukraine: What Lessons for Control Regimes?” with David Hayes, director, David Hayes Export Controls; and Rob Hunter-Perkins, head of research, Conflict Armament Research https://www.iiss.org/events/2025/09/report-launch-tracking-the-components-of-missiles
11 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “President Lee’s First 100 Days,” with Jeonghun Min, professor at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy; Hanbeom Jeong, professor at the Korea National Defense University; and Victor Cha, CSIS Korea chair https://www.csis.org/events/impossible-state-live-podcast
1 p.m. 37th and O Sts. NW — Georgetown University Institute for U.S.-China Dialogue on Global Issues discussion: “Singapore’s foreign policy and diplomatic relations,” Singapore Ambassador to the U.S. Lui Tuck Yew; and Evan Medeiros, director of Asian studies and chair in Asia studies at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and senior fellow at Georgetown University’s Initiative for U.S.-China Dialogue on Global Issues https://uschinadialogue.georgetown.edu/events/singapore-s-foreign-policy
THURSDAY | OCTOBER 2
8 a.m. 7920 Jones Branch Dr., McLean, Va. — Potomac Officers Club 2025 Intel Summit discussion, “Acceleration of Commercial Technology into National Intelligence Missions,” with Timothy Wood, program manager for the machine-assisted analytic rapid-repository system at the Defense Intelligence Agency, https://www.potomacofficersclub.com/events/2025-intel-summit
12 p.m. 1957 E St. NW — George Washington University discussion: “From Russia with Love: Transnational Corruption and Sanctions Bypass in the Ukraine War,” with Alyona Vandysheva, CEO, Transparency International Russia (in exile); Ilia Shumanov, compliance specialist, anti-corruption expert and former CEO of Transparency International Russia https://calendar.gwu.edu/event/from-russia-with-love
FRIDAY | OCTOBER 4
9 a.m. 1957 E St. NW — Program on New Approaches to Research and Security in Eurasia Annual Policy Conference discussion: “Russia’s War in Ukraine” https://www.ponarseurasia.org/ponars-eurasia-annual-policy-conference
10 a.m. — National Institute for Deterrence Studies virtual seminar: “European Perspectives on China and its Nuclear Buildup,” with Max Hoell, postdoctoral research fellow at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory https://thinkdeterrence.com/events/european-perspectives-on-china
