Military Marred By Politics

By Ayush Deshpande Nov. 12, 2025

Nakshatra Arun Art

On Sept. 30, over 800 generals and admirals, constituting the most important of America's military leadership, left their posts from around the world to gather in an auditorium at Marine Base Quantico. However, the speech that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gave was far from the crucial address the officers had flown thousands of miles to hear. Masquerading as a call to defend the nation, Hegseth furthered his political interests at the cost of the serious professionals in his audience, a pattern that has become all too familiar with the current administration.

As Secretary of Defense, Hegseth acts as top military policy advisor for the U.S., yet his resume is anything but traditional for the position—one that typically calls for extensive leadership experience. Following his retirement from active military duty, Hegseth transitioned into media and military commentary, joining Fox News in 2014. Yet despite his unconventional resume for his role, he has strongly advocated for a return to tradition at the Pentagon.

“It seemed pointless to fly hundreds of generals from around the world just to deliver a political message. Not only was it unnecessary, but gathering all of our top military leadership in one place is strategically reckless—if that location were attacked, our command structure could be crippled instantly,” Junior Aden Tsang said.

Hegseth’s speech called for a return to “warrior tradition,” criticizing the military for—as he believes—

“[parroting] the insane fallacy that ‘our diversity is our strength.’” His idea for a strong military is one that completely excludes individuals who are transgender. Yet, excluding transgender people from serving limits the pool of capable recruits who can join the military: according to the New York Times, there are 4,240 service members diagnosed with gender dysphoria and according to the Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, transgender individuals are twice as likely to serve in the military as members of the general population. History has shown that similar policies excluding LGBTQI+ service members, such as Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell from 1994 to 2011, where service members were required to hide their sexual identity, have resulted in the loss of thousands of skilled members of the military according to the National Public Radio. This undermines the core mission of the military: to protect and defend the nation.

“Calling for the discharge of transgender service members is not a benefit for the military—it is purely political. That kind of language has nothing to do with defending the country,” Senior Nishan Patel said.

The administration's partisan control challenges the prevailing apolitical norm of the military. In addition to

forcing the political speech onto in-person attendees at Quantico, the Department of Defense is now making it mandatory viewing for all members of the military, further increasing political influence over the military.

Aside from the speech, Hegseth has restricted media coverage of the Pentagon. New policies require reporters to have any topic they wish to cover—classified or unclassified—approved by his office beforehand. This presents a highly problematic situation, as it restricts factual coverage of the military, which can reduce public oversight and government accountability. However, all but one news outlet rejected the Pentagon’s demands, ending their reporting at the Pentagon. As a result, the new press corps, set to cover military-related issues, is no longer a serious newsroom but is rather filled with far-right pundits and “news organizations,” including Alex Jones’ “Info Wars” and “Front Lines” by Turning Point USA, both of which are not credible sources and spread dangerous misinformation.

The recent political influence over the military should serve as a warning sign to America that our military has veered off course. It is now an institution marred by politics, with optics as its main goal rather than the defence of the nation. In order for the military to be a reliable fighting force, it needs to stop playing politics at the cost of the American people.

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About the Contributors

Ayush Deshpande

Staff Writer

Ayush Deshpande is a junior at Leland High School, he is a staff writer for the charger account. He is very interested in Formula One, Legos, Star Wars, and when not at school or playing video games he is often found at K1 Speed or his freinds houses.

Nakshatra Arun

Artist