The story of self-styled “Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth’s meeting for top military leaders has evolved since the earliest leaks last week. At first, it was a secret call to generals to drop what they were doing and prepare to come to Washington, with no explanation as to why. In recent days, officials have told the press Hegseth will deliver his message of restoring the “warrior ethos” to the U.S. military and present new standards toward that goal. He’s also expected to discuss “new readiness, fitness and grooming standards,” which sounds like a prelude to removing all diversity from the military. One of the most recent evolutions has Donald Trump attending, because, why not? It sounds fun. He has FOMO. None of it sounds particularly mission critical, especially since it’s set to coincide with what looks increasingly like a government shutdown. The military is well-equipped to hold meetings online in a secure fashion. Despite that, generals worldwide are being required to come to Washington, D.C., to all be in one room together tomorrow for what seems more and more like a pep rally designed to make Hegseth look good. Early concerns that a forced loyalty oath might be in the works seem to have abated, but the idea of publicly announcing that all these leaders would be in one place is meshugas from an operational security perspective, to say nothing of being unnecessarily expensive and disruptive to the important work that keeps us all safe. On January 5, 2021, all 10 living former secretaries of defense wrote with one voice in The Washington Post, demonstrating the best of the civilian-led American military. These are the men who preceded Hegseth. They served their country, instead of spending time dropping classified information into Signal chats that included a (thankfully trustworthy) reporter. On the eve of Hegseth’s spectacle, let’s revisit the words of Ashton Carter, Dick Cheney, William Cohen, Mark Esper, Robert Gates, Chuck Hagel, James Mattis, Leon Panetta, William Perry, and Donald Rumsfeld, whose love of country unified them on the day before January 6, no matter their differences on matters of policy and politics. “Each of us swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. We did not swear it to an individual or a party,” they wrote. After confirming the importance of the peaceful transfer of power to our democracy, they unequivocally condemned any effort to involve the military in determining the outcome of the 2020 election—an important statement as we look ahead to 2026 and 2028: “As senior Defense Department leaders have noted, ‘there’s no role for the U.S. military in determining the outcome of a U.S. election.’ Efforts to involve the U.S. armed forces in resolving election disputes would take us into dangerous, unlawful and unconstitutional territory. Civilian and military officials who direct or carry out such measures would be accountable, including potentially facing criminal penalties, for the grave consequences of their actions on our republic.” They cautioned Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller, whom Trump had sent to the Pentagon only after he lost the election, that military leaders, specifically him, “must also refrain from any political actions that undermine the results of the election or hinder the success of the new team.” In other words, the military must remain strictly apolitical. Tomorrow, hold Hegseth to the benchmark that these men, all of whom served their country and honored their oath, set for military service. Hegseth holds the same position. We are entitled to expect no less of him. Trump has flooded Chicago with masked agents and sent National Guard troops to enter Portland, Oregon, and perhaps Memphis, Tennessee, and others as well, using troops on American streets with no crisis that necessitates it. Make sure you have conversations with the people around you about why that’s okay—when it so obviously isn’t—and ask them to join you, like the 10 former secretaries of defense all joined together, to stand for principle and for democracy in this dangerous moment. This was their charge to military leaders on January 5, 2021: “We call upon them, in the strongest terms, to do as so many generations of Americans have done before them. This final action is in keeping with the highest traditions and professionalism of the U.S. armed forces, and the history of democratic transition in our great country.”
Whatever he has planned, for Hegseth to treat world history so flippantly does nothing to calm concerns. And regardless of what happens, it’s incumbent on military leaders to heed the advice their former leaders offered in 2021. Hegseth dishonors the military and its tradition of service by using generals for a photo opportunity. It’s up to us to make sure those around us see it for what it is. I hope you’ll forgive me if I close tonight with something personal. After a long day of travel, I got home to not only my family, my dogs, my cats, and my chickens, but also to the first actual copy of my book, Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual For Keeping A Democracy.
The book will be available on October 21, but it’s available for purchase now (links to different booksellers here), and I hope you’ll join me at one of the stops on my book tour if there is one nearby.
On Friday, a judge in Oregon will hold a hearing on whether to block Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to the state. There has never been a more important time for us to be together, to be informed, and to be ready to defend our democracy. We’re in this together, Joyce You're currently a free subscriber to Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance . For the full experience, upgrade your subscription.
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Monday, September 29, 2025
Pete Hegseth and the Generals
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