By Katherine Tinsley
3:00am PDT, Apr 6, 2025
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In a memo issued on Monday, March 31, Pete Hegseth said the Pentagon "allowed standards to slip."
"Different standards for men and women in combat arms, MOS and jobs, that's not acceptable," Hegseth said in a video posted to X.
MOS stands for "military occupational specialty."
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Donald Trump and his cabinet have taken a vocal stance against diversity, equity and inclusion, and Pete Hegseth's memo aligned with his boss' approach.
"We have to have the same standard — male or female — in our combat roles to ensure our men and women who are under our leaders, or in those formations, have the best possible leaders and the highest possible standards that are not based at all on your [gender]," the former Fox News personality said.
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In the past, women and men were held to different physical standards in the armed forces.
"All entry-level and sustained physical fitness requirements within combat arms positions must be [gender]-neutral, based solely on the operational demands of the occupation and the readiness needed to confront any adversary," Hegseth wrote.
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Pete Hegseth, who previously served as an Army National Guard officer, stressed that there are needs that soldiers need to meet: "The effort will ensure combat standards are clear, mission-focused and reflective of the unique physical demands placed on our service members in various roles," he said.
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"Service members in these roles must exhibit speed, strength, agility and endurance to navigate the demands of combat situations," he continued.
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"Soon we will have nothing but the highest standards for men and women in combat," Pete Hegseth continued.
He previously told Shawn Ryan he "straight up" believed "we should not have women in combat roles."
"It hasn't made us more effective, hasn't made us more lethal, [and] has made fighting more complicated," he said at the time.
