After left-leaning Military.com published a fishy rumor from unnamed sources that the Army was considering cutting 90,000 active duty troops, the U.S. Army and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth contradicted the rumor. But why would unnamed military officials and leftist media be interested in spreading such a rumor to begin with?
Based on conversations with active duty military and civilian military employees, my own experience in a military family, and public statements from military leaders in the past, I would guess there are two reasons. First of all, certain radical leftist generals and other officers ordered to help cut the military budget are probably looking for anything to cut other than their ridiculous woke, DEI, climate-alarmist programs. Second of all, it is possible that such a rumor was circulated to undermine Hegseth and the Trump administration by framing the new leadership negatively.
Again, this is speculation, but let’s look at some facts that can back me up. First of all, the U.S. Army’s X account unequivocally labeled the Military.com piece “wrong” and added, “End Strength might even go up. We are building more combat power while reducing staff and overhead. Welcome to your leaner, more lethal Army!” Secretary Hegseth reposted the tweet.
Wrong. End Strength might even go up. We are building more combat power while reducing staff and overhead. Welcome to your leaner, more lethal Army!
— U.S. Army (@USArmy) Apr 3, 2025
Notably, Hegseth also reposted a boast from Gen. David Allvin, touting “soaring recruiting stats” for the Air Force in March. Posts and statements like that have surfaced multiple times from military and government leadership since Trump took office, which was why I found the allegation from Military Times suspect. Why would you brag about increasing recruitment and then cut tens of thousands of active duty soldiers?
Next, look at the statements of military leaders and their official policies in recent history. Under the Biden administration, the Pentagon insisted that the fake climate crisis was an “existential” national security threat, and many if not the overwhelming majority of officers and officials in the military who enacted policies in accord with that view are still in their jobs under Trump. Indeed, the Biden Pentagon’s obsession with climate alarmism had far-reaching effects.
For instance, in 2023, Maj. Gen. Matthew P. Beevers enthused about Democrat CA Gov. Gavin Newsom, the National Guard, and the U.S. Army’s disastrous solar panels project: “Reducing climate risks and building long-term energy resilience is an absolute priority to Newsom’s administration.” Joe Biden made headlines for spending massive amounts of taxpayer dollars on climate alarmist projects, and no doubt the woke military leaders who benefited from that spending are glum at the prospect of cutting it under Trump. They’d probably rather cut troops.
Of course, climate alarmism isn’t the only massive woke push in the military in recent years, a push that picked up steam initially under Barack Obama and rushed ahead full speed under Biden. In 2023, the U.S. Navy hired a drag queen to promote recruitment (yes, very counterintuitive). A Navy-sponsored presenter was caught on video that same year claiming it was U.S. military policy to ask children sexually explicit questions, including about “gender orientation,” without parental consent or knowledge.
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Back in 2022, the Army’s West Point Military Academy honored Veterans Day by giving cadets who had requested religious or medical exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccines a mere 10 hours to agree to get the jabs or face punishment. More than 8,000 active duty military in all were kicked out over the experimental Covid vaccines, and the Army cut off some 60,000 Army troops and guardsmen from pay and benefits.
All of which is to say that almost all the pernicious military leaders in charge of enacting the above disastrous policies are still in the military and in positions of authority. They resent the new administration attempting to reform the military, and they certainly don’t want to sacrifice the grift of their woke policies and forever wars to cut useless budget items.
Is it such a stretch to believe that Pentagon authorities would deliberately start a rumor that the military was planning to cut troops, both because they hope to avoid slashing budget pork and because they want to make Trump and Hegseth look bad?
