The Department of Defense has become the latest agency to eliminate all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, along with race-based hiring practices and the promotion of left-wing ideologies, following President Donald Trump’s executive order banning DEI initiatives at the federal level.
No sooner than he was sworn in, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth immediately issued a Pentagon-wide directive to terminate all Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices throughout all military departments and civilian DoD agencies.
“The President’s guidance (lawful orders) is clear: No more DEI at Dept. of Defense,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote in an X post. “The Pentagon will comply, immediately. No exceptions, name-changes, or delays.” He added that “those who do not comply will no longer work here.”
Hegseth, 44, was sworn in on Saturday morning after a contentious confirmation process, during which he faced numerous unsubstantiated or outright false allegations.
Vice President J.D. Vance cast the tie-breaking vote after three Republican Senators — Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa M
“All praise and glory to God. His will be done, and we’re grateful to be here,” Hegseth said after being sworn in, going on to credit his wife as well. “And as I said in my hearing, it was Jesus and Jenny. I would not be here without you, sweetheart. Thank you so much.” He also thanked Trump for nominating him and sticking by him, as did Vance, despite the allegations.
Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Charles Ezell issued a memo last week to department and agency heads, notifying them that all government DEI offices must be closed by the end of the day on Wednesday. Employees in those offices were informed that they would be placed on paid leave.
There have already been reports that some federal agencies have attempted to dodge Trump’s order by renaming DEI departments and titles of the officials who headed them. Federal employees were asked to report any efforts to disguise DEI programs through the use of imprecise or coded language and titles.
Meanwhile, Trump’s nominee to head Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., received some potentially good news last week about his prospects for confirmation.
Rhode Island Democrat Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse may break with his party to vote for Kennedy, who is a longtime friend, WPRI reported, because of their past relationship and friendship dating back to when they were roommates in law school.
In 1998, The Providence Journal chronicled the friendship between the two men: “On many mornings, the two young men, scions of wealthy families with histories of public service, hiked and hunted in the woods around Charlottesville, Va. Kennedy half-kiddingly says he failed his first bar exam because Whitehouse persuaded him to take a four-day whitewater rafting trip in West Virginia when he should have been studying.”
That said, Whitehouse told Politico last week when asked about RFK Jr.’s confirmation: “I’m not going to reveal how I’m voting [on] any nominee.”
Also, last month, he told Slate, “There’s a bunch of stuff that I want from HHS. So I’m going to hold my fire on that.”
The dates are set for Kennedy’s hearings before the two committees he needs to get approval from before being voted on by the entire Senate, Fox News reported.
“The Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary nominee will participate in hearings with two committees, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) and the Senate Committee on Finance. The first hearing will occur next week, on Wednesday, in front of the Senate Finance Committee, which oversees HHS. The Senate’s chief committee covering issues tied to health and healthcare, the HELP committee, will probe Kennedy the following day, on Thursday,” the outlet reported.
The Senate Finance Committee will be the committee that decides if his nomination advances, however.
