Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has just delivered a masterstroke for America’s military future, and the left is predictably losing its collective mind.
In a memo issued on Friday, Hegseth ordered the Military Service Academies to overhaul their admissions process, stripping away the diversity, equity, and inclusion nonsense that’s been eroding standards for far too long.
This move is a long-overdue return to sanity, ensuring our officer corps is built on merit alone.
The memo, first reported by The Daily Wire, directed the MSAs to certify within 30 days that all future admissions will be based “exclusively on merit.”
Hegseth minced no words in his public acknowledgment on X, shortly after the Wire report, stating, “ALL FUTURE ADMISSIONS will be ‘exclusively on merit.’”
MEMO to: @WestPoint_USMA @NavalAcademy & @af_academy
ALL FUTURE ADMISSIONS will be “exclusively on merit.”
“Race, ethnicity, or sex” can NO LONGER BE CONSIDERED.
Our officers will be the best of the best—full stop. pic.twitter.com/XAE0QzxLHP
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) May 9, 2025
“‘Race, ethnicity, or sex’ can NO LONGER BE CONSIDERED,” he added. It is a long-overdue cultural gut-punch to the woke ideologues who’ve been infecting our military with identity politics.
The left will scream about “diversity” and “inclusion,” but let’s be real: War doesn’t care about your skin color or gender. Frontline insurgents aren’t checking boxes for Asian women or non-binary candidates before they strike.
Do you have any family that served in the military?
Hegseth gets this fundamental truth, and, thankfully, he’s not afraid to act on it.
“Our officers will be the best of the best—full stop,” Hegseth declared on X. This isn’t just hyperbole; it’s a promise to the American people and the troops who’ll serve under these future leaders.
The stakes genuinely couldn’t be higher.
DEI in military operations of national importance is outrageous. The idea that we should prioritize a predetermined mix of candidates over raw ability is a betrayal of the soldiers who rely on their leaders to be the sharpest, toughest, and most capable.
Hegseth’s memo ensured that merit, not quotas, will shape the officer corps.
The MSAs — West Point, the Naval Academy, and the Air Force Academy — have long been bastions of excellence, producing leaders who’ve kept America safe. But recent years have seen them bow to progressive pressure, diluting standards in the name of “equity.” Hegseth’s order stopped that rot cold.
War is the ultimate meritocracy. A battlefield doesn’t hand out participation trophies and neither should our military academies. Hegseth’s memo made it clear: If you want to lead America’s fighting forces, you’d better be the best, period.
This isn’t just about the military. This same logic (and mandate) should apply to law enforcement, firefighters, and first responders. A burglar doesn’t care about your race. A raging inferno doesn’t check your gender. A bleeding victim doesn’t ask for your pronouns. Merit should always reign supreme, especially in these high-stakes fields.
Hegseth’s memo sets a precedent that should ripple across every institution that values competence over ideology. The left’s obsession with DEI has no place in arenas where lives are on the line. It’s a delusion that victims ultimately pay in blood.
The secretary’s order came with a clear timeline: MSAs must rank-order candidates based on merit by 2026, using scores like the 10 U.S.C. § 7442, 7443, 8454, 8456, 9442, and 9443. The mandate for excellence isn’t a suggestion.
Hegseth isn’t playing games. He’s directed the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to ensure compliance by the 2026 admissions cycle. This is leadership with teeth, something the military has desperately needed.
The left will clutch their pearls, but their outrage is meaningless. They’d rather see a “diverse” officer corps than a lethal one, and that’s a choice America can’t afford. Hegseth prioritizes victory over feelings, as he should.
Our enemies don’t care about our diversity stats — they care about our strength. Hegseth’s directive ensures that the U.S. military will remain the most lethal force the world has ever known, as the memo itself stated.
This move is a win for every soldier, sailor, airman, and Marine who deserves leaders chosen for their skill, not their identity. Hegseth’s military is putting America first, and it’s about time.
The participation trophy generation can fume all they want. Hegseth’s focus on merit guarantees that our future officers will be forged in excellence, not ideology. That’s a future worth fighting for.
Critics will cry “discrimination,” but the only discrimination here is against mediocrity. Hegseth is ensuring that the MSAs produce leaders who can win wars.
This is a defining moment for the military. Hegseth has drawn a line in the sand: competence over everything else. The left may hate it, but our troops — and our nation — will thank him.
Hegseth’s memo isn’t just a policy change; it’s a declaration that America’s military will never compromise on greatness.
That’s the kind of leadership we need in the Pentagon.
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