US media: Hegseth suddenly convenes hundreds of officers to boost morale

CNN website, September 27 reported: According to six sources familiar with the matter, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will unexpectedly gather hundreds of generals and admirals in Virginia next week so that he can describe his plan to reshape the Department of Defense into a "war department" and outline new standards for military personnel. "This is intended to demonstrate the strength of the new army under the president's leadership," a White House official told CNN.

The report said that according to three sources, the meeting is expected to resemble "a pep rally," where Hegseth will emphasize the importance of the "warrior ethos" and outline a new vision for the US military. He is expected to discuss new readiness, fitness, and grooming standards that officers are expected to adhere to and enforce (The meeting is expected to resemble "a pep rally" where Hegseth will underscore the importance of the "warrior ethos" and outline a new vision for the US military, said three of the sources. He is expected to discuss new readiness, fitness and grooming standards the officers are expected to adhere to and enforce).

"This is to get the horses into the barn and whip them into shape," said a defense official familiar with the plan. "And those who carry stars on their shoulders are better audiences from a visual perspective. This is what Hegseth is telling them: either join or your career may be shortened."

The report said that according to three sources, Hegseth's team is planning to record his speech and release it publicly later, while a White House official said the White House is planning to promote it. As of Friday, all sources said that Hegseth has no plans to make any major statements related to national security during the meeting, making it even more surprising that he ordered officers to personally attend and leave their posts for an event that is essentially just a significant speech.

The report said that according to White House officials and a source familiar with the plan, it is currently not expected that weapons displays will be held for officers as suggested by President Trump. Two officials told CNN that Trump has no plans to participate in or attend the meeting scheduled for next Tuesday.

A source familiar with the plan and a White House official said that this unprecedented gathering of senior military officers was initially Hegseth's idea. The White House official said that Hegseth later informed the White House about the plan, but President Trump himself had little knowledge of the details when asked about it in the Oval Office on Thursday.

The report said that according to a recent CNN report, the hundreds of generals and frontline commanders invited were not told why they were ordered to put everything aside and go to Virginia. However, one source said that a defense official told CNN that the generals and frontline commanders summoned by Hegseth have been told that if they cannot attend, they need to provide a very good reason for their absence.

The report said that in recent years, Hegseth, a former Army veteran, has repeatedly shown disdain for generals and officers, accusing them of injecting "woke" politics (which refers to the liberal party's advocacy of respect for different ethnicities, promotion of fairness, and opposition to gender discrimination - translator's note) into the American military culture. Since taking office, he has dismissed a large number of prominent generals and officers, and in May, he ordered the Department of Defense to reduce the number of four-star generals and admirals by at least 20%.

The original title of the report is "Hegseth’s surprise gathering of top military brass is to deliver speech on 'warrior ethos,' sources say" (According to sources, Hegseth's unexpected gathering of top military brass is to deliver a speech on 'warrior ethos').

Additionally, The Washington Post also has similar updates.

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1844361749293066/

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