If you're elected president, you become Commander in Chief of the US Armed Forces. Part of that job requires naming a civilian to head the DOD, and they lead the department as they see fit.
To be honest, I'm not some huge Pete Hegseth fan. I've had my criticisms of his decisions and actions. But I’m sick of the mainstream media's reaction to this week's meeting of generals. They're clutching their pearls, calling it "unprecedented," "never-before-happened."
So what? Abnormality doesn't automatically render the gathering a problem. Such a style of argument is nothing more than a red herring.
Then, of course, you have those who are critical of what Hegseth talked about. They're calling him a body-shamer. And I have to say this: God forbid the leader of the Pentagon prioritize our military's physical fitness.
Do we not want battle-ready military operatives? Is that not what they signed up for? Is the mission of our military not to be ready to defend this country and battle those who seek to destroy us?
I don’t mind getting partisan and mentioning that the Biden administration relaxed the rules. I know they are relaxed because my former boss, Harry Lee, was in the military. He told me that one time he was up for a promotion. And guess what? It had physical fitness requirements. He told me that when the time came, he failed the test. But his response wasn't to hem and haw and call exercise oppressive. Rather, I remember him praising meritocracy. And I, for one, am glad we're getting back to that.
It's good to recognize that, along the way, our fighting spirit dropped off and was, instead, replaced by a focus on tangential matters like DEI.
If other people want to focus on that, that's totally fine. But let's be honest: That's not the mission of our military, which is to defend our nation.