Pete Hegseth pushes to make promotion color blind, based on merit
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated that the Department of Defense’s core mission is to win wars. This needs a military that’s a lethal fighting force that promotes and assigns based on merit. Thus, individual initiative, excellence, etc., must be rewarded. Hegseth intends to stand up a task force that will be focused on merit based, color-blind policies.
From Military Times:
That work will include changes to the promotion and job selection process, with a mandate that “the department will not consider sex, race or ethnicity when considering individuals for promotion, command or special duty.” Exceptions can be made for assignments with specific operational requirements.
Hegseth also said officials will ban quotas and goals for career fields, and prohibit instruction of gender ideology and DEI initiatives. And all defense academic institutions, including service academies, will be ordered to “teach that America and its founding documents remain the most powerful force for good in human history.”
The task force is an extension of President Donald Trump’s previous orders to eliminate diversity and inclusion programs across a range of federal departments. In his confirmation hearing earlier this month, Hegseth said Trump charged him with ensuring the military is “laser focused on warfighting, lethality, meritocracy, standards, and readiness.”
But those comments have drawn questions and criticism from advocates who say diversity is critical to military readiness. Advocates have already sued to stop Trump’s executive order mandating changes in the ability of transgender individuals to serve in the ranks, something which Trump has argued hurts morale and readiness.
In past books and media appearances, Hegseth has criticized decisions to allow women to serve in combat roles and overturning the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. During his confirmation hearing, he suggested that standards for many military jobs have been lowered to meet diversity quotas, another allegation that past defense officials have denied.
Additional Reading:
Shane III, L. (2025, January 29). Hegseth moves to ban race, sex consideration from military promotions. Military Times. Link.
Category: Military issues, Pentagon
“During his confirmation hearing, he suggested that standards for many military jobs have been lowered to meet diversity quotas, another allegation that past defense officials have denied.”
Don’t ask /talk to the officials.
Talk to the warfighters; the instructors and students who graduated, past and present. The front line NCOs who have to further instruct, wrangle and ride herd on these “cats” that come to them from the schools.
Not even 10 years ago I worked on a naval transport. Aside from the normal deck/engine/steward department compliment we also carried a civilian storekeeper. Dude was sharp and turned out to be a former SK1 (E-6) who intended to stay in but kept getting turned down for Chief. He said a few of the Chiefs really wanted him to advance and join their mess but overall the decision was made to “advance blacks, females or black females” first. He said the end result was they had some of the biggest retards in the senior enlisted ranks and nothing they could do about it. He was so disgusted with it he just left and went civilian side with his experience. He did quite well for himself.
But ultimately he said the current Chief’s mess isn’t what it used to be — and was before all this DEI and lowering of standards shit became mainstream.
If promotion in any field isn’t strictly merit based — it’s not really a promotion.
Lets see Cpl Smuckatelli.
UNQ twice on the rifle range
87 pft score
300 points away from your cutting score
3 page 11 entries.
Oh, it says right here you are an exploited minority, cross dressing Diva.
Congratulations Sgt Smuckatelli !!!!!
Perhaps the only time it could be waived is when you’re just the last man standing and battle/stress tested, like when Pvt. Manning was forced to become Sgt. Manning in 1998’s “When Trumpets Fade.” He tried to refuse it, saying he wasn’t qualified but the company commander wouldn’t let him…
“That may be your opinion Sergeant, but it’s not mine. You’ve managed to stay alive for a week, something the rest of your platoon couldn’t do. Call me crazy, but from where I’m standin’, that makes you qualified for the job.”
Not sure how today’s Army/Marine Corps would handle such a situation.
Back in the day 84-90 Marines would get assigned to a billet above their paygrade and just do it. I once got thrown into a Gunny, SSGT billet running a maintenance det at a CAX. This included morning muster with the Lt Colonel in charge of the exercise. This went on for a couple of weeks until a SSGT showed up and I went back to the Sgt in charge of the Motor T platoon.
1977 I was a PFC, Supply Admin Clerk, and got shoved into a Sergeant’s position for 10 days while he was on leave. Apparently we didn’t have enough NCOs available.
I was in over my head, but did the best I could. I fucked up a few things, but the L-T in charge was over all pleased with my performance at the end. I never wanted to be an NCO after that.
I can get behind this.
Meanwhile, Democrats lose their minds… not “insurrection” when they advocate it:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/democrats-leave-emergency-meeting-vowing-230353177.html
Can they actually lose something they never had?
That means no official photo in centralized promotion packets, NCOER’s scrubbed for any gender or racial reference to include name. I approve this message.
“But…but…but…MUH DIVERSITY! How DaHell we gonna fill the command billets of the 69th Intersectional Dildo Division unless we promote Groomers into positions that used to be held by Boomers? We gave a whole new meaning to the term “Rainbow Division”! The Rainbow Division also won both WWI and WWII…single handed. Black Jack Pershing and Dugout Doug, both….weep. The Horror!”
A good start, Pete! Now…get rid of all the Commies and domestic enemies of Our Republic that have infiltrated the ranks and Make Warriors Great Again.
Grandpa D was a SGM in the WW1 Rainbow Division. Diversity is great thing to have, but it cannot be the foundation on which you build a business or military unit. Effective organizations are built on quality people. Their ethnicity, race, whateverthefuck the group of the day is just doesn’t matter.
“Effective organizations are built on quality people. Their ethnicity, race, whateverthefuck the group of the day is just doesn’t matter.” Testify! And THAT’S eggs-xactly why the “New” AT&T went from being a conglomeration of Baby Bells and the finest Telecommunications System in the world to a POS “Woke” (before it became the in thing to be), can’t fix troubles, has lost all (well, most) of the people that could trouble shoot and repair troubles group that it is now. The basic qualifications to even get hired were watered down so much that as long as you could “check the boxes” and fog a mirror, you got hired. They even took away a basic test of “match the hardware to the tool needed to do the job…” …ie; hammer to nail, screw to screwdriver, and so on. And God Forbid an Outside Plant or Service Technician be required to successfully pass Pole Climbing School. “We have bucket trucks and ladders that can reach 40′ up.” “Oh noes…the attachment height on this pole crossing the interstate/railroad/river is @ 48-98 feet!” Ooops. One of the lads that I trained, and worked with for years, got sent TDY from GA to NC because he COULD hook a pole and do the work required to replace the cables thru the mountains after Helene. He’s still up there…making serious coinage.
yup
Now Pete needs to make the Army put less weight on Audie Murphy and SGT Morales boards when it comes to promotions. Both are great organizations, but get wayyyy too much consideration.
Just received my notice that DEI is out. I plan to attend an upcoming meeting and see what’s up. I was holding out hope for this change before stepping away. Might hang around as an auxiliary member for a while yet.
Waiting to see how FEMA goes. They have been providing training for ICS and GT SAR. Who will take their place? If they are dismantled.
definitely feeling better about coming days.