Overview
- Roughly 800 generals and admirals were summoned on short notice to the Marine base at Quantico, an unusually large gathering described by outlets as without modern precedent.
- In a lengthy address, President Trump targeted undocumented migrants, the press and Democratic opponents, suggested using San Francisco, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles as military “training grounds,” and cited a decree creating a rapid‑reaction force for domestic unrest.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth rejected diversity programs as “woke,” mandated clean‑shaven, short‑hair grooming, rolled out tougher gender‑neutral fitness benchmarks with twice‑yearly testing, and said deployments would meet “the highest male standard.”
- Hegseth vowed looser rules of engagement, saying troops have “carte blanche” to intimidate, demoralize, track and kill enemies, a stance he linked to recent Caribbean strikes on suspected drug traffickers.
- The push caps ongoing cuts of at least 20% to four‑star billets and a planned 5% reduction in civilian staff, following ousters of multiple senior officers, while the Pentagon offered only a terse notice of the event and reports pointed to potential multimillion‑dollar travel costs.