Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has sparked controversy after using a transphobic slur at a recent event.
While speaking in support of Iowa Rep. Zach Nunn’s reelection campaign at the Operation Top Nunn: Salute to the Troops military fundraiser at the Iowa State Fair on Monday, August 17, Hegseth, 46, spoke on the anti-DEI policies at the U.S. Department of Defense.
“At the Department of War, we do training, not tr***ies,” he said via the Iowa Capital Dispatch and CNN, using a slur to refer to transgender people. “It is a day and night difference.”
Hegseth continued, “Training, lethality, accountability, discipline, readiness — the bedrock of what it means to be an American warrior — is the only focus of our department. Colorblind, gender-neutral, merit-based. That’s it. We want the best! And anybody with half a brain knows that’s common sense! I guess common sense isn’t all that common in Washington.”
The comments quickly made headlines and led some senators to speak out and demand the defense secretary face consequences for his words.
“Pete Hegseth’s comments are abhorrent and an insult to LGBTQ+ service members and veterans,” Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey wrote via X on Thursday, August 20. “Transgender service members have and continue to serve our country with honor and dignity. Pete Hegseth must resign.”
In a separate X post, Georgia Sen. Reverend Raphael Warnock wrote, “Pete Hegseth should be fired immediately.”
Us has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
Hegseth has not publicly commented on the controversy surrounding his remarks. Instead, he has been sharing posts from President Donald Trump’s TruthSocial regarding the ongoing Iran war.
During his tenure as defense secretary with Trump’s administration, Hegseth — who is currently leading the deadly war in Iran — has overseen policies restricting transgender people from serving in the military.
Last year, Trump, 80, signed an executive order barring transgender and nonbinary people from military service. The Supreme Court upheld the order in May, but legal challenges are still moving through lower courts.
Hegseth has also taken steps to seemingly block the promotion of qualified Black and women military leaders, according to the New York Times.
This isn’t the first time Hegseth has raised eyebrows for his speeches. In April, the defense secretary seemingly confused Samuel L. Jackson’s classic rant from Pulp Fiction with a Bible verse during a Pentagon prayer service.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell later responded to the social media chatter by insisting Hegseth intentionally read a “custom prayer” during the service.
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