Claim: Trump fired Jim Mattis, gave him ‘Mad Dog’ nickname. Fact check: False

As Trump’s War in Iran causes unprecedented global volatility, revealing significant weaknesses in our military, the President and his Secretary of War can’t seem to stop playing the politics of prejudice. A year ago, without explanation, Hegseth fired the first ever female Chief of Naval Operations and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a Black man. The latter was an F-16 pilot who once said in a recruitment commercial: “When I’m flying…You don’t know…whether I’m African American…You just know I’m an American Airman, kicking your butt.” Turns out when he wasn’t flying his boss figured out his race and kicked him off his post. Now, Hegseth has interfered with promotions for over a dozen Black and female senior officers across all branches, including blocking four outstanding Army officers–two Black men and two women–from becoming one-star generals. What was presented as "anti-woke" posturing is clearly little more than a thinly-veiled and targeted culture war. These racist, sexist, superficial “leaders” gotta go.

The war against wokeness is morally and strategically wrong, distracting us all from real missions. Instead of swiftly ending an ill-defined, illegal, indefinite war with Iran (that is not going well, to say the least) or addressing an ongoing manpower shortage, Hegseth went out of his way to unilaterally stop the advancement of four diverse officers with long careers of “exemplary service,” despite questionable legal authority to do so and against the counsel of the Secretary of the Army. Allegations of racial and gender bias are apropos, but it’s also just plain stupid. Roughly 43% of active duty troops are people of color while their leadership is overwhelmingly white, and women are leaving the military at a rate 28% higher than men. At a time when the military could use all the talent it can get, why is Hegseth keeping competent leaders from leading and disqualifying and disenfranchising over half the talent pool?