Hegseth Strikes Two Black and Two Female Officers From Promotion List
The New York Times • • world
Key Points:
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is blocking the promotion of four Army officers to one-star generals, a rare and controversial move raising concerns about potential racial and gender bias.
- Among the officers blocked, two are Black and two are women, while most of the promotion list includes white men; this has led some senior military officials to question if these officers are being unfairly singled out.
- Hegseth pressured Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll to remove the officers from the promotion list, but Driscoll resisted due to their exemplary service records; Hegseth eventually acted unilaterally to strike their names.
- The promotion list is under White House review before Senate approval, with some female and Black officers still included, but Hegseth’s actions have sparked criticism for undermining the traditionally apolitical, merit-based promotion process.
- Hegseth has framed his actions as efforts to combat what he calls a “woke” culture and biased leadership, but critics argue his scrutiny of minority and female officers is damaging confidence in the Army’s promotion system.
