Women veterans in Congress and nearly 100 House Democrats condemn the secretary of state's comments about women in the military.
TO Mariel Padilla For 19th
Two congressional veterans led nearly 100 House Democrats in sending a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday urging him latest comments about women in the military is deeply harmful and requires more transparency. The initiative's leaders, Reps. Chrissy Houlahan and Maggie Goodlander, have called for the reinstatement of an independent advisory committee dedicated to women in service.
“We write to express our deep concern about your recent comments and actions targeting women in the military,” the Democrats said in the letter, which was obtained by The 19th.
The letter comes as Congress sets the military budget and follows Hegseth's highly unusual decision to call hundreds of generals and admirals stationed around the world to a meeting in Virginia on September 30. In a 45-minute address at that meeting, Hegseth spoke largely of ridding the Army of “woke garbage.” He addressed the topic of women in combat roles and the need for gender-neutral standards, denounced diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and criticized so-called gender diversity quotas.which don't exist.
“Women have sacrificed their safety and sometimes their lives for our country, and we are deeply alarmed by the current administration’s efforts to undermine them,” the letter said. “We also oppose the destruction of any resources that support their well-being and equal treatment. Any suggestion that women are unqualified, in both body and spirit, is a deep insult to the military women who have contributed so much to our country.”
Women make up more than 21% of active duty military personnel and have held combat positions in the military. for decades.
In the letter, members of Congress also criticize Hegseth's recent memos weakening the definitions of hazing and bullying, which will likely make it more difficult to file complaints of discrimination and harassment in the Armed Forces. Changes can get in the way military justice reforms carried out over the past few years whose purpose was to help victims of sexual harassment and assault. Almost every fourth woman in the army report being sexually assaulted And more than half report being harassed– although researchers have found the vast majority of incidents are not reported at all.
“Levels of discrimination, hazing and bullying are widespread in the military among both men and women, but women experience this unwanted behavior at significantly higher rates,” the letter said. “These issues are known to impact readiness and can lead to serious health and career consequences for military personnel, thereby disproportionately affecting women who serve.”
Hoolahan, an Air Force veteran and ranking member of the Armed Services Committee's Personnel Subcommittee, said Hegseth's influence on the Army was “extremely chilling.” Houlahan said one of her relatives wants to join the military, but her parents are “really concerned” about the environment she'll end up in.
“It's just my personal family, so I can only imagine that it affects a lot of people when they're making a decision—not just whether to join, but whether to stay,” Hoolahan said.
Goodlander, who served as an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve, said she recently celebrated the Navy's 250th anniversary with a room full of sea cadets and their parents. Young women now looking at our military and their parents are worried about joining a department that has “a person at the helm who has no business being in such an exceptional position of public trust,” said Goodlander, who is also a member of the Democratic Women's Caucus.
“This speech is completely consistent with what we have seen from Pete Hegseth since before his tenure as minister,” Goodlander said, pointing to the fact that he also supplanted the only women who had four-star ranks as part of his first acts in the role.
The letter condemns Hegseth's Termination of the Department of Defense Advisory Committee on Women in Service (DACOWITS), one of the oldest independent advisory committees of the Ministry of Defence. Over its 75-year history, DACOWITS has played an important role in overturning the ban on women participating in combat. This is also provided recommendations– based on research, data and direct interaction with military personnel – to the Department of Defense, including on issues of appropriate combat equipment for women and parental leave policies. According to the letter, the Department of Defense accepted, in whole or in part, about 94% of the committee's recommendations.
“DACOWITS has been extremely instrumental in achieving your stated goal of creating a merit-based system by breaking down barriers and providing opportunities for the most qualified people to serve our country,” the letter said. “Our military must be a place that allows our service members of all genders, races and faiths to serve with dignity and realize their full talents.”
Houlahan said the Department of Defense has not been transparent and that Congress does not know whether any residual aspects of DACOWITS will remain elsewhere. She said Hegseth did not respond to calls for more information.
Goodlander said Hegseth's view of women in the military and his strategy for leading the U.S. military “objectively weakens us.”
“To anyone who watched his confirmation hearings and continued to watch his inexperience and poor judgment exposed again and again, he turned to a performative and hateful bravado against core American ideas and against a core American constituency: women who have served and women who will serve,” Goodlander said.
The letter ends with House Democrats calling for DACOWITS' “immediate reinstatement.” And if no changes are made by Oct. 31, members of Congress will request an in-person briefing no later than Nov. 6 to discuss Hegseth's rationale for eliminating the committee and a detailed explanation of the new general physical fitness and occupational fitness requirements.
“I’m just baffled by my incompetence,” Hoolahan said. “The fact that Secretary Hegseth believes he is building an organization around what he considers a meritocracy – even though he is literally the least qualified person I have ever known to serve in that position. And the fact that he is denigrating 51% of the population, the women of our country, by citing an all-volunteer service – is mind-boggling. I think he clearly lacks an understanding of what modern combat is. and what a lethality it is.”
