Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth took a victory lap on Monday after the Texas Military Department removed several seemingly overweight National Guard troops deployed to Chicago, when a photo of them went viral over the weekend.
Hegseth, a former Fox News host with a problematic personal and professional history, has often proven to be concerned with the outward appearance of elements of his department. Among other demands, he ordered a makeup studio installed inside the Pentagon and dictated which nail polish colors are acceptable for Army soldiers to wear.
The moves are part of his and President Donald Trump’s focus on restoring a “warrior ethos” to the armed forces, federal government and America as a whole, something they claim was at some point lost. It has included a purge of top military leaders whose views do not align with the president’s agenda and, more recently, an attempt by Hegseth to cull “fat troops” and “fat generals and admirals.”
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“Standards are back,” Hegseth posted to social media on Monday in response to a report on the troops’ replacement the day before. The National Guard Bureau released a statement on Thursday, seemingly in response to the viral photos, confirming that all guardsmen “are required to meet service-specific height, weight and physical fitness standards at all times.”…