【Text by Observer Net, Liu Bai】

On September 30 local time, U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin gathered nearly a thousand U.S. military officers at the Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia for an unprecedented large-scale meeting. President Trump also attended.

These two politicians, once "television stars," spoke passionately, while the generals below remained silent.

In a speech lasting nearly 50 minutes, the defense secretary called on commanders to "be prepared for war." He hoped to eradicate "political correctness" within the military, strongly criticized "obese generals" and diversity policies, claiming these had led to the decline of the military over decades, and demanded commanders who disagreed with his agenda to resign. He emphasized that the Department of Defense needed "the right people" and "the correct culture," to restore traditional military appearance standards, eliminate "woke culture," and remove "clear distractions" that had weakened the "War Department's" combat effectiveness in recent years.

Trump also gave a more than one-hour long speech. He claimed the United States was facing an "internal invasion," which was harder to deal with than external enemies, and proposed a controversial idea: using "dangerous cities" in America as "military training grounds." He also stated that he would invest over $1 trillion in the armed forces to keep the U.S. military the "strongest in the world," prioritizing merit over political factors, and re-emphasizing physical fitness in the military.

On the other hand, the event triggered strong condemnation from Democrats, who criticized it for seriously undermining the neutrality of the military and pressuring the military into political pressure. Illinois Governor Pritzker accused Trump of making dangerous remarks by portraying American immigrants as "internal enemies."

On September 30, Trump attended a high-level military meeting of U.S. generals. Visual China

Accusations against "Fat Generals" and "Beard Monsters"

Reuters described this meeting, involving Fox News host Austin and former reality TV star Trump, as having a "televised" flavor. The senior military officials were notified at the last minute to attend this impromptu meeting, and due to the sudden call and unclear purpose, the intent behind the event sparked widespread speculation.

Austin began by saying, "Stupid and reckless political leaders have set the wrong course, and we've lost our way. We've become the 'Woke Department.' But this is over now."

Facing senior officers from around the world, Austin defended his dismissal of high-ranking military personnel, including a black U.S. chief of staff and a female admiral. He said these dismissed officers represented a "pathological culture."

He promised to completely reform the system in the Pentagon for handling discrimination complaints and investigating misconduct, criticizing the current system for making senior military officials walk on eggshells.

He called for reforms, saying, "Leaders with forgivable, sincere, or minor mistakes should no longer be burdened for life."

"People make unintentional mistakes; our errors should not define entire careers."

Austin said the military would ensure "all designated combat positions return to the highest male standards," because "this work is a matter of life and death, and must meet the standards."

"Under my instructions, the era of unprofessional appearances is over!"

High-level military meeting held by the U.S. military, the defense secretary emphasizes "the correct culture." Visual China

He explained that this was not about preventing women from serving.

"If women can meet the standards, that's fine; if they cannot, that's just how it is. Even if that means certain combat positions have no qualified women, that's okay," he said. "It's not our intention, but it might be the final result."

"This also means weak men will not be able to perform. Because we're not playing games."

He also said seeing "obese generals and admirals" in the Pentagon was "completely unacceptable," and emphasized the importance of military appearance and discipline: "No more beards or sloppiness, no more 'beard monsters'!"

Additionally, Austin told the generals to "be ready for war and prepare to win."

He said the current urgent situation requires more troops, more ammunition, more drones, more submarines, more B-52 bombers, more innovation, and more artificial intelligence, and that progress must be rapid to maintain a leading position.

"The time has come, and the mission is urgent."

Austin concluded, "If what I said today made you feel cold in your hearts, then you should make a glorious choice and resign. But I know most of you are not like that, and these words made you feel excited."

The generals below simply listened quietly.

Trump says: Dangerous cities will become training grounds

On his way to the meeting, Trump told reporters that if he didn't like certain military leaders, he would fire them.

The Associated Press (AP) pointed out that Trump is used to supportive crowds who laugh at his jokes and applaud his self-praise. However, among the military leaders attending the meeting, he did not receive such reactions.

According to the tradition of military non-partisanship, most military leaders showed neutral expressions during Trump's political speeches, which contrasted sharply with the scene of ordinary soldiers cheering at Trump's speech in Fort Bragg earlier this summer.

Senior U.S. military officials attending the meeting

After Austin, Trump took the stage for a speech lasting over an hour. He joked, "If you don't like what I say, you can leave. Of course, that means your rank and future are gone."

Then he talked about the power of U.S. nuclear submarines and fiercely criticized the media, former president Biden, and Venezuela.

At the beginning of this month, Trump renamed the Department of Defense as the "War Department." He said the War Department "will prevent war."

He mentioned that the number of recruits in the U.S. has surged to record highs recently and emphasized the importance of culture and readiness.

Trump stated that all branches of the U.S. military are receiving significant investments, including advancing the first generation of sixth-generation fighters, and investing hundreds of billions of dollars to modernize the country's nuclear deterrent capabilities, as well as building the "Gold Dome" missile defense system.

"I promise to invest over $1 trillion in our military by 2026, which will be the most in the history of our country!"

Trump also sought military resources for his priority issues and clear domestic purposes, including quelling riots and violent crime.

Previously, he had deployed the National Guard and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles, threatening to take similar measures in other cities led by Democrats to combat crime and illegal immigration, and had increased military presence along the U.S.-Mexico border.

"I told Pete (referring to Austin), we should use these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military and the National Guard, but the military? We will soon move into Chicago, a big city, but the governor is incompetent."

Trump added, "We are facing an internal invasion. It is no different from an external enemy, but in many ways, it is harder to deal with because they do not wear uniforms."

"Trump doesn't deserve it"

Since taking office, the Trump administration has rapidly reshaped the Pentagon, dismissing many top generals to advance Trump's national security agenda and eradicate what he called "discrimination" in DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives. In September, Trump signed an executive order to rename the Department of Defense as the "War Department."

It is very rare for U.S. military leadership to gather in one place. According to the latest data from the Pentagon in June, there are currently 838 active-duty generals in the U.S. military.

Several days before, the fact that Austin summoned military officers from around the world sparked heated discussions. Multiple insiders revealed at the time that Austin did not plan to issue a major national security statement, and the meeting was essentially a speech aimed at explaining the Trump administration's plan to rename the Department of Defense as the "War Department" and setting new military standards.

On the 28th, Trump told Reuters that he would also attend this meeting, "I want to tell the generals that I love them, they are respected leaders, be strong, tough, smart, and compassionate." Trump added, "That's it, that's team spirit. It's about time someone did this."

A senior defense official described it as "putting the horse back in the stable and taming it." From a visual perspective, having senior officers wearing stars as audience was better. This was an opportunity for Austin to convey a message to them: either comply, or end their careers early.

Critics accuse Trump and Austin of "showing off."

Corey Schak, a former director of the White House National Security Council's defense strategy and now a researcher at the American Enterprise Institute, said, "I heard it was Austin's personal show-off, demonstrating that he could bring them under control. Since all commanders and their sergeants attended, it's more likely that the minister is obsessed with 'soldier spirit' and appearance standards, rather than strategy."

Several military officials and regular soldiers said they were unsure what impact Trump and Austin's statements would have on their daily lives in the military. Some expressed concern about defining domestic unrest as "war," while others found the idea of stricter physical standards and eliminating unnecessary training appealing.

Senator Jack Reed, the Democratic leader of the Senate Armed Services Committee, condemned the meeting as "an expensive and dangerous failure of leadership."

"More disturbingly, Mr. Austin issued an ultimatum to senior U.S. officers: either comply with his political views or resign," Reed said in a statement, calling it an "extremely dangerous" demand.

Other Democrats criticized the meeting for severely undermining the neutrality of the military and pressuring the military into political pressure.

Illinois Governor and Democrat Pritzker said on X platform, "Anyone who calls American citizens enemies that must be 'taken down' does not deserve to lead this country!"

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