Overview

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered roughly 800 generals and admirals, plus senior enlisted advisers, to assemble Tuesday at Marine Corps Base Quantico on short notice.
• President Trump confirmed he will attend and speak, calling it a positive, esprit de corps–style meeting about how the military is performing.
• The in-person format and timing are highly unusual, with experts and officials noting the event’s scale, urgency and opaque agenda.
• Officials say Hegseth plans to highlight accomplishments and outline his “warrior ethos” vision after rapid moves to cut senior ranks, fire top officers and rebrand the Pentagon as the Department of War.
• The Secret Service now leads security for the event, which could cost millions and faces logistical risks as the fiscal year ends and a possible shutdown could disrupt return travel.