Democrats and veterans groups are taking aim at Trump Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth’s belief that women should not serve in combat roles, with at least two crucial GOP senators also asking for answers on his stance.
Hegseth, 44, a Fox News host, has often made questionable comments on the military matters he’d oversee should he be confirmed as Pentagon chief. But his assertions last week have elicited fears that Hegseth’s views could have a chilling effect on women wanting to serve or alienate those currently in uniform.
“I’m straight up just saying that we should not have women in combat roles,” Hegseth said on “The Shawn Ryan Show” podcast. “It hasn’t made us more effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated.”
He added: “We’ve all served with women, and they’re great. But our institutions don’t have to incentivize that in places where, traditionally — not traditionally, over human history — men in those positions are more capable.”
The comments quickly were picked up after Trump’s surprise announcement choosing Hegseth on Tuesday, with combat veteran Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) telling reporters she wanted clarification on his stance.
“Even a staff member of mine, she is an infantry officer . . . she is a tough woman, so he is going to have to explain it,” said Ernst, top Republican on the Senate Armed Services emerging threats subcommittee.
A spokesperson from Ernst’s office later told The Hill that she looks forward to visiting with Hegseth.
Incoming Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) also said he wants to learn more about Hegseth’s position.
“We’ve gotten to the point where women are involved in almost every part of military service,” he told Politico, adding that he would “look into exactly what [Hegseth’s] point of view is.”
But Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), an Iraq war veteran and Purple Heart recipient, had far more pointed words:
“Where do you think I lost my legs?” Duckworth said on CNN Wednesday.
Duckworth, who was one of the first women to fly combat missions as an Army helicopter pilot, lost both her legs and some mobility in her right arm after her aircraft was hit by a grenade in 2004.
“Look, he’s not qualified to serve as Secretary of Defense, and obviously, he’s made these comments about how he doesn’t think women should be in combat. . . . I ask him, how does that strengthen our nation’s military?”
She added: “We can’t go to war today without our women military members,” she said, noting there are more than 225,000 active-duty women serving in the military right now.
The Trump transition team didn’t respond to requests for comment about Hegseth’s remarks about women in combat.
Women have been in combat roles for the better part of three decades beginning in 1991 and 1993, when Congress repealed the law barring women from combat aircraft and ships, respectively.
That was followed by the Navy in 2010 reversing its policy banning women from submarines, and the 2013 repeal of the Combat Exclusion Policy, allowing women to serve in ground combat units.
A few years later in 2015, former Defense Secretary Ash Carter opened all military combat positions to female service members. Such progress has allowed women to fill about 220,000 jobs previously off-limits to them, such as special operations, infantry, armor, and reconnaissance units.
Today, women account for about 17.5 percent of the military’s active-duty force, according to 2022 data from the Defense Department.
Hegseth — a decorated veteran who served as an Army National Guard infantry officer with tours in Afghanistan and Iraq and at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba — in the past has accused the military of lowering standards for women to enter combat jobs.
“Women shouldn’t be in combat at all,” Hegseth said in a June interview with conservative commentator Ben Shapiro. “They’re life-givers, not life-takers. I know a lot of wonderful soldiers, female soldiers, who have served, who are great. But they shouldn’t be in my infantry battalion.”
In his remarks last week, Hegseth also suggested that allowing women to fight has led to more casualties on the battlefield.
“Everything about men and women serving together makes the situation more complicated, and complication in combat, that means casualties are worse,” Hegseth said.
The comments drew the ire of veterans organizations and Democrat lawmakers, who argued women have competed and succeeded on the same playing field as their male counterparts. They also worried Hegseth’s views, should he be confirmed, would have a negative effect on women looking to join the armed forces at a time when the military has struggled with recruitment.
Allison Jaslow, the chief executive of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America who deployed to Iraq in 2004 as a platoon leader, believes the women in combat have proven tougher than many of their male counterparts.
“Need proof? Look at the women who’ve graduated from Ranger School, which is so grueling that around half of the men who enter it fail out,” she said in a statement to The Hill. “Those women deserve a Secretary of Defense who is aware of that reality and also ensures that the culture in the military embraces that reality – especially as we still continue to confront a recruitment crisis.”
Joanna “JoJo” Sweatt, a Marine Corps veteran and the national organizing director for Common Defense, a progressive veterans group, said the organization’s women’s veteran caucus had been discussing Hegseth’s expected nomination with frustration.
“His on-record dismissal of diversity initiatives and resistance to acknowledging the contributions of women and LGBTQ service members signals a dangerous regression to a culture that undervalues and undermines our voices, service, and sacrifices,” she said. “Hegseth’s stance disregards the progress made toward a more inclusive military that reflects the diversity of the country it defends.”
Sweatt, who joined the service in 1997 as female Marines were being infused into combat support roles, was a radio operator and deployed to Iraq in 2003.
She said one member pointed out that the question of women in combat is a completely different can of worms, as “we’ve always served in combat, it’s just that our stories were never told. Many were behind enemy lines or on the front providing a variety of direct support and many posing as men firing on the front lines.”
Current House Armed Services Committee Chair Adam Smith said Hegseth’s appointment would be “a step background.”
“Every person who puts on the uniform deserves respect, gratitude, and a fair chance to serve. Trump’s appointment of Pete Hegseth is a step backward. I’ll stand up against any attempt to deny respect or restrict the right to serve based on gender,” Smith wrote on X.
Hegseth could face a tough path to confirmation, as Republicans will hold only a slim majority in the Senate and his past comments and relatively untested status may serve as obstacles.
