A Draft-dodger and A Dipsomaniac
The Military Learns It Has No Leadership
From the farthest reaches of the globe they came, American generals and admirals summoned to a Marine Corps base in Virginia to hear from two men who purport to command them. What they learned was possibly the most terrifying news a fighting force could hear: you have no leadership.
President Donald Trump and Secretary of War-fence Pete Hegseth wanted to show the military leaders who was in charge. They wanted to inspire a military culture that aligned with their personal values. They wound up displaying their disconnect from the culture that gave rise to the military leaders and those they command.
Their message could have been delivered in a memorandum, or explained in a Zoom call. There was no need to spend millions unnecessarily on military travel, or to create a security nightmare by packing America’s military leadership into a single target.
But the inconvenient, expensive, and dangerous travel was the point. Trump and Hegseth brought the brass to Quantico just to prove they could. Their words were inconsequential. Yanking generals and admirals out of their command posts was a power move, nothing more.
So, they sat there, military professionals with three or four decades of military and command experience, stoically and rigidly listening to the patronizing rants of a draft-dodger and a dipsomaniac. Trump and Hegseth brought them to Quantico to demonstrate their leadership. They accomplished the opposite.
Washington Post columnist David Ignatius wrote that “the scariest part” of the meeting was that Trump and Hegseth “seem oblivious to the reality that 21st-century combat will be dominated by drones and artificial intelligence, plus commanders who understand these high-tech weapons.”
Drones? The Fantasizer-in-Chief, resplendent in the rambunctious varnish of his makeup, preferred to talk about battleships.
“It is something we’re considering,” he told the captive military audience, “the concept of ‘battleship.’ Nice six-inch side, solid steel. Not aluminum, aluminum that melts if it looks at a missile coming at it. Starts melting as the missile’s about two miles away.”
Putting aside the cartoonish image of a modern ship that “looks at a missile coming at it,” battleships are about as relevant to modern warfare as horseshoes are to fly fishing. “Battleships were heavily armed naval powerhouses built to slug it out with other warships,” wrote Business Insider’s Chris Panella. “During the World Wars, they dominated the seas, but by the end of the Cold War, these once mighty warships were completely obsolete.”
The self-described “war hero” is not concerned about military efficiency or lethality. It’s all about the look. “I am a very aesthetic person,” he said. “I don’t like some of the ships you’re doing aesthetically.” “They say, ‘Oh, it’s stealth,’” he added. “That’s not stealth. An ugly ship is not necessary in order to say you’re stealth.”
The “war hero” elaborated on his battles. “I’m very careful, you know, when I walk down stairs,” he noted. “A few of our presidents have fallen and it became a part of their legacy,” he added. “We don’t want that. Walk nice and easy. You don’t have to set any records. Be cool. Be cool when you walk down. But don’t bop down the stairs.”
One small step for a man, one giant leap for the 25th Amendment.
Hegseth was a clown addressing an audience of ring-masters. The military commanders were likely unimpressed by a FANG lecturing them on discipline and toughness. The Secretary primarily engaged in a soliloquy of personal biases, declaring that he will no longer consider race or gender in promotions, that diversity is unwelcome in the military, that facial hair is outlawed, that women may see their military roles reduced or eliminated, and that hazing and bullying are welcome. He also denounced “fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon, and leading commands around the country and the world.” Another “very aesthetic person.”
The speeches “left military officials in ‘disbelief,’” reported Yahoo News, “frustrated and disturbed that they were ordered to Virginia with little notice, leaving their posts around the globe in order to accommodate Hegseth’s ego.”
“I have yet to find a single military official who was in the audience today who thought that this was a good presentation,” Helene Cooper of The New York Times told MSNBC.
The military leadership will probably give lip-service to Trump and Hegseth’s demands, while continuing to enforce effective disciplinary policies – even those deemed too “woke.” They will not, however, allow their troops to use American cities as “training grounds” to battle the “enemy from within,” as Trump wants.
But that doesn’t matter. Trump doesn’t need the traditional military establishment to militarize American cities. He is building his own loyal force of incels, losers, ne’er do wells, and wannabes, lured by a signing bonus and freedom to bully fellow Americans. While the Pentagon leadership may balk at domestic use of military force, the newly thrown-together ICE army will jump at it.
After the September 30th event, it’s clear that America will soon have two military establishments. One, located in the Pentagon, will focus on foreign threats. The other, located within Homeland Security, will focus on Trump’s political opponents.
Two armies in a polarized, heavily armed nation. Two visions of America, one that emphasizes liberty, another that emphasizes obedience.
The battle lines are being drawn.