DoD Secretary Pete Hegseth gathers 600 rank-and-file troops to announce six new initiatives, including drone command and religious affairs office, and highlight plans to cut 20% of nation’s generals and admirals.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gathered 600 rank-and-file troops on Wednesday at Marine Corps Base Quantico to announce six initiatives that included the creation of an autonomous warfare command, a religious affairs office that will report directly to the secretary, and the addition of a new corps of cadets at five universities.
Hegseth also highlighted a plan to cut 20% of the nation’s generals and admirals.
“I’m proud to stand on this stage and report that the warrior ethos has been revived, our military is being rebuilt and American deterrence is back,” the secretary said about five minutes into the “State of the Force” address, which he intends to make an annual event.
Hegseth, a 46-year-old Army National Guard veteran and former Fox News host, gave a speech exactly one year ago to about 800 generals and admirals and their top enlisted advisers to lay out his vision for the U.S. military. Some of the policies the services have worked to implement include more physical fitness tests, tighter body fat restrictions and fewer shaving waivers across the force.
“Now, I think the generals heard the message. Those who responded positively, which is most of them, are leading newly focused and newly empowered and disciplined formations,” Hegseth said. “Those generals who did not, who clung to the woke department, or seemed to think civilian control of the military is simply a suggestion. Well, they no longer work here.”
Hegseth began Wednesday by praising the force, particularly the troops in attendance, and celebrating what he called the return to a warrior ethos. He also lashed out at media members and reiterated that the Pentagon is no longer the “woke department.”
“The complainers, the ideologues and the poor performers are no longer in the driver’s seat. No more silly PowerPoint trainings or drag queen shows,” Hegseth said. “No more gender pronouns. No more identity months. Only the warrior ethos.”
About 20 minutes into the speech, he got to the new part of the message — six new strategic initiatives to reshape the force. Hegseth first announced a new command to oversee and coordinate drone development and deployment supporting overseas operations.
“Today at my direction, we are announcing the creation of Autonomous Warfare Command — or AutoWarCom — a four-star combatant command with service-like authorities built to scale autonomous and robotic capabilities,” Hegseth said.
The establishment of the command by Oct. 1, 2027, will require the Pentagon to work with Congress to get the necessary legislation, according to the memo signed Wednesday.
“This command will possess directed manpower, budget, acquisition authorities and create dedicated military career pathways for officers and enlisted personnel,” Hegseth said in the memo.
The second initiative, Project Meridian, is an effort to leverage the nation’s premier private-sector innovators, business leaders and technologists to accelerate “the fielding of advanced systems for the next generation battlefield.”
Emil Michael, the under secretary of defense for research and engineering, will lead the project that will be co-directed by Elon Musk, businessman and former senior adviser to President Donald Trump; Palmer Luckey, co-founder of defense technology company Anduril Industries; and Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House.
“We should have the humility to recognize that the best forecasters of future conflict do not solely reside inside the Pentagon,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth expects Project Meridian’s findings to be completed and submitted in 120 days. The group’s first meeting would be held in a SCIF 200 yards from where the speech was held on base.
The third initiative involves a plan called FORTRESS America (Federal Operations for Resilience, Troop Resources, Energy, Supply, and Survivability) that is intended to ensure that every major U.S. military installation generates its own independent power.
“If an adversary takes down the grid by cyberattack, by sabotage, or by any means, our bases stay lit,” Hegseth said. “Our aircraft keep flying. Our command centers never go dark.”
Michael Duffey, the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, has been directed to stand up the program office within 30 days, according to the memo.
The fourth initiative, Next Great American Base, involves building a new base on American soil.
“We’re calling on every governor in the country and adjutant general … to step up to the plate and bring us their best sales pitch. If your state wants the honor … show us why and how you’re going to do it — cutting through the red tape, offering up the land and rolling out the red carpet for our military families,” the secretary said.
Hegseth said there will be no “backroom Washington deals,” just a “merit-based contest” to see which is the best state. The state-of-the-art installation would host elite troops across hundreds of thousands of acres, the Pentagon said in a news release.
Engineered to operate completely off the commercial grid, it would feature independent power generation, autonomous systems and advanced air defenses.
The America’s Corps of Cadets initiative partners with a new set of institutions — Louisiana State University, Liberty University, Tuskegee University, Mississippi State University and Hillsdale College — to create additional full-time Corps of Cadets programs.
The Pentagon chief visited the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets on Sept. 19, where he also worked out with cadets at Kyle Field.
“The patriotic and selfless service being taught at places like Texas A&M, VMI, the Citadel, Norwich, Virginia Tech, and the University of North Georgia,” Hegseth said. “We need more officers from academic institutions like our military academies and senior military colleges. And today, we’re going to make that happen.”
The sixth initiative, the Office of Religious Affairs, will report directly to Hegseth and future defense secretaries to come.
“Faith in something greater than us,” Hegseth told the audience. Less than 5% of the force identifies as non-religious, which means 95% of the force “recognizes an Almighty God,” he said. “This is not going to be a paper-pushing shop. It’s going to have real teeth,” the secretary added. “The experts, our chaplains, will finally have an advocate at the highest levels.”
Christianity has been an emphasis since Hegseth took over the Defense Department, including a monthly prayer and worship service that started in May 2025. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which has sued the Pentagon for its monthly services, criticized the announcement.
“The Department of Defense owes it to the nation’s service members to defend religious freedom as promised in our Constitution — a freedom they risk their lives protecting for all of us,” Rachel Laser, organization president and CEO, said in a statement. “Hegseth’s latest announcement violates that promise by elevating Christianity to an even higher role in shaping U.S. military policy.”
Hegseth and the troops who traveled for the speech started the morning with physical training at the Pentagon. The secretary and troops wore “This is War” shirts, referencing the Pentagon’s secondary name, “Department of War.”
“We are in a war of attrition against the Pentagon bureaucracy every single day, and it is a war that we intend to win,” the secretary said during his close to one-hour speech.
As troops arrived at the Marine Corps History Center an hour before the speech, a 144-page “War Department field manual” was on tables to grab. The book included four of Hegseth’s speeches, including last year’s Quantico address.
Trump wrote a foreword that said, “I will not ask you to fight dumb wars.” The audience consisted of E6 noncommissioned officers and junior commissioned officers with the rank of O3.
“Now it could have been E5s or E7s or O2s or O4s, but I’ve got a sweet spot, a special thing, for E6s and O3s,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth also, as expected, announced a 20% cut to general and flag officers. “The media calls that a purge. I call it accountability, and long overdue, and frankly, the bare minimum,” the secretary said. The planned reductions must take place by Jan. 1, according to multiple reports.
- Security