‘PREPARE FOR WAR’: Pete Hegseth announces new mission, high standards for US Armed Forces

"Fighting, preparing for war and preparing to win, unrelenting and uncompromising in that pursuit, not because we want war—no one here wants war—but it's because we love peace," Hegseth said. This mission is alongside his intense effort to eliminate "wokeness" from the military, which is an element in the Armed Forces that the administration believes puts service men and women at risk.

He announced 10 new directives, including that the "highest male standard" will be in place for all of those in the Armed Forces. A combat field test will also come into place, "that must be executable in any environment at any time and with combat equipment."

Everyone to be held to highest male standards

"Each service will ensure that every requirement for every combat MOS, for every designated Combat Arms position, returns to the highest male standard only because this job is life or death. Standards must be met, and not just met. At every level we should seek to exceed the standard, to push the envelope, to compete. It's common sense and core to who we are and what we do and should be in our DNA."

Fitness tests

"We are also adding a combat field test for combat arms units that must be executable in any environment at any time and with combat equipment."

"I'm also directing that war fighters in combat jobs execute their service fitness test at a gender neutral age norm, male standard, scored above 70%. It all starts with physical fitness and appearance." Hegseth later said, "So whether you're an Airborne Ranger or a chairborne Ranger, a brand new private or a four-star general, you need to meet the height and weight standards and pass your PT test."

Physical fitness and grooming

"At my direction, every member of the joint force at every rank is required to take a PT test twice a year, as well as meet height and weight requirements twice a year, every year of service. Also today at my direction, every warrior across our joint force is required to do PT every duty day. Should be common sense.

"Most units do that already, but we're codified, and we're not talking like hot yoga and stretching real hard. PT, others, either as a unit or as an individual, at every level, from the Joint Chiefs to everyone in this room to the youngest private leaders, set the standard, and so many of you this do this already. Active, Guard, and Reserve.

"This also means grooming standards. No more beards, long hair, superficial, individual expression. We're going to cut our hair, shave up, shave our beards, and adhere to standards."

No more woke language

"We're undertaking a full review of the department's definitions of so-called toxic leadership, bullying, and hazing to empower leaders to enforce standards without fear of retribution or second-guessing. Of course, we can't do like, nasty bullying and hazing.

"We're talking about words like bullying and hazing and toxic. They've been weaponized and bastardized inside our formations, undercutting commanders and NCOs. No more. Setting achieving and maintaining high standards is what you all do, and if that makes me toxic, then so be it."

Return to standards

"We're ensuring that every service, every unit, every schoolhouse and every form of professional military education conduct an immediate review of their standards. Now we've done this in many places already, but today it goes across the entire Department of War.

"Any place where tried and true physical standards were altered, especially since 2015 when combat arms standards were changed to ensure females could qualify, must be returned to their original standard.

"Other standards have been manipulated to hit racial quotas as well, which is just as unacceptable. This too must end. Merit only. The President talks about it all the time. Merit-based."

He spoke to the gender divide inherent in these standards, saying, "I want to be very clear about this, this is not about preventing women from serving. We very much value the impact of female troops.

"Our female officers and NCOs are the absolute best in the world, but when it comes to any job that requires physical power to perform in combat, those physical standards must be high and gender neutral. If women can make it excellent. If not, it is what it is. If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it."

Hegseth further said that "weak men won't qualify because we're not playing games. This is combat. This is life or death."

No more walking on eggshells

"We are attacking and ending the walking on eggshells and 'zero defect' command culture. A risk-averse culture means officers execute not to lose instead of to win. A risk-averse culture means NCOs are not empowered to enforce standards, commanders and NCOs don't take necessary risks or make tough adjustments for fear of rocking the boat or making mistakes. A blemish-free record is what peacetime leaders covet the most, which is the worst of all incentives.

"You, we, as senior leaders, need to end the poisonous culture of risk aversion and empower our NCOs at all levels to enforce standards. Truth be told, for the most part, we don't need new standards. We just need to re-establish a culture where enforcing standards is possible. And that's why today, at my direction, I'm issuing new policies that will overhaul the IG, EO, and MEO processes. I call it the no more walking on eggshells policy. We are liberating commanders and NCOs.