Speaking during the West Point commencement ceremony on May 23, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth sounded off on the sort of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs that have long afflicted the United States and the federal government in particular. The anti-DEI push from the Trump Administration is a significant change from that which has been pushed by the government in the past.
Such is what the Secretary of War, who is 45 years old, insisted during his speech to the graduating cadets at the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. His comments focused particularly on issues like combat and warfare, which he saw much of while in the Army during the Global War on Terror.
He then went on to start slamming various DEI programs and the like, particularly various awareness and identity months, which are something that Secretary Hegseth has worked to cancel and remove since he became secretary in 2025. Many conservatives take issues with these months, such as Black History Month and Women’s History Month.
Announcing the end of the identity months back in January of 2025, he said, “Our unity and purpose are instrumental to meeting the Department’s warfighting mission. Efforts to divide the force – to put one group ahead of another – erode camaraderie and threaten mission execution. Going forward, DoD Components and Military Departments will not use official resources, to include man-hours, to host celebrations or events related to cultural awareness months, including National African American/Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Pride Month, National Hispanic Heritage Month, National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and National American Indian Heritage Month. Service members and civilians remain permitted to attend these events in an unofficial capacity outside of duty hours.”
In any case, speaking during the commencement ceremony in a forceful statement on the matter, Secretary of War Hegseth declared, “You do not have time to celebrate identity months,” noting that America’s warfighters should be focused on victory rather than identity month celebrations.
Further, Secretary of War Hegseth said on the subject of identity month celebrations and like DEI-related issues, during the commencement speech at West Point, “You will not compromise. You will not see color. And you will not try to meet arbitrary quotas based on immutable characteristics.”
Commenting yet further on the identity month celebrations issue, and on leadership and the like as they related to it, “You do not have time to celebrate identity months! And you will not make excuses for yourself! You will not take excuses from others! You will lead!”
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He also said, during the speech, “Last and most importantly, seek God. And know that we are not him. It’s humbling. It’s also liberating. As Charlie Kirk often said, remember always, this too shall pass. The good times will pass, the bad times will pass. You’re never as good as you think you are, nor are you as bad as you think you are. Seek God in every circumstance.”
He added, “Combat is the ultimate test, and our best Americans must ace it.” He further said, “West Point is set apart. It’s special. It’s above politics. Success here is based on merit. It’s how you perform that matters.” “Diversity is not our strength. Unity is our strength,” Hegseth concluded.
Watch him here:
Leftists, of course, went berserk about it. Angrily sounding off online, leftists said things like “You incompetent j—off! You’re playing political games!” and “You are incompetent and clueless! You are an embarrassment every time you open your mouth!” Another added, “You turned a commencement speech into a culture-war audition; cadets signed up for leadership lessons, not political theater.”
Conservatives, meanwhile, were happy with what Secretary Hegesth said about merit and DEI at West Point, saying, “Finally! The military’s only job is to win wars, not handle PR. Merit over equity all day. Hegseth is giving West Point exactly what it needs.”
Featured image credit: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pete_Hegseth_by_Gage_Skidmore_2.jpg