A few things about Hegseth, Trump's pick for SECDEF

First, he's way against women serving in combat arms - Saying in a recent podcast, "I'm straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles." Rolling back women's roles in service is a top concern among most Army officials I've talked to recently. A proxy for this attack in recent years has been the service's fitness test and the fight over having a gendered standard.

For years, two high profile Virginia Guardsmen have been running a militia which has made overtly violent threats against the government

military.com/daily-news/202… This militia routinely does tactical training, and has made recruiting pitches for children to join. But the main question is - how does one serve in the Guard and a militia which is presumably built to fight a Guard unit. Does this violate Army policy?

Tulsi Gabbard, long know for her pushing of conspiracies and Russian talking points, briefs special ops students on the role of psyops, leadership and disinfo

military.com/daily-news/202… It's far into the story, but the Army is facing two big problems right now: Its outdated social media/comms policies and top officials are terrified of stirring up right-wing media and GOP lawmakers. No one wants to be the subject of the Tucker Carlson segment.

1-2 Stryker Brigade out of Joint Base Lewis McChord lost a M2 .50 cal and soldiers probably lost their 4 day weekend. Base is on lockdown - no real info yet. I know a missing machine gun sounds bad on paper. But there’s a chance of some dumb mix up - it’s in the wrong supply room or someone had a bad count or something.

Big scoop from me and @KToropin: Most members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group who were indicted on sedition charges previously served in the military.

military.com/daily-news/202… There’s no evidence vets and service members are more or less likely to be radicalized. But when they do, they’re more dangerous with the tactical and planning skills they have and, more importantly, their inherent social credibility.

A key part of this story, it's a bigger picture than ponytails and making the Army more parent-friendly. These have less obvious, but massive impacts on the force's ability to wage war.

https://twitter.com/StevenBeynon/status/1531773823401467904

The bottom line, if women can't be comfortable in their combat gear - they can't train for battle effectively. It costs the force nothing to allow soldiers to be comfortable, and it actually saves the VA a ton of money from disability claims related to scalp damage issues.

The Great Reset is the subject of many conspiracy theories, mostly that “global elites” are using the pandemic to obtain more power/establish one world government/destroy US sovereignty/abolish capitalism.

https://twitter.com/tulsigabbard/status/1531576031307395074

It’s actually a meeting of the World Economic Forum. But the far right on the internet has latched onto it as a “insert your conspiracy theory here” sort of thing. (I’m over simplifying because Twitter)

BREAKING: A Wisconsin Guardsman who pleaded guilty to his role in the Jan 6 Capitol assault in Sept is being removed from the service. But he was allowed to keep training with his unit, with weapons, and drew a monthly paycheck. military.com/daily-news/202… Wisconsin moved much slower than Virginia. Both states say they wanted to wait for the Justice system to work. In Virginia’s case they moved to kick their Jan 6 soldier out right after he pleaded guilty. He was wasn’t allowed to drill since the attack. military.com/daily-news/202…

I spent a lot of time with soldiers in Alaska. Here's what I found:

A group of motivated troops set to be a premium fighting force for the Army, probably its toughest soldiers -- but they lack a clear identity and proper support from the Pentagon.

military.com/daily-news/202… Alaska has a lot of problems. But their soldiers and key leaders are genuine and open about those problems. Generals and specialists told me the exact same story. That's a good sign. And I appreciate the good fellas of the 4-25 infantry for letting me crash in their tent.

Washington state's National Guard arrives in Poland, some of their troops recently left Poland and Ukraine. C Troop, 1st Squadron, 82nd Cavalry Regiment of the Oregon Guard also recently arrived. These are both pre-planned deployments and are replacing other units who were there.

https://twitter.com/USArmyEURAF/status/1488542686281965568

Washington state deployed Task Force Raven to Ukraine about a year ago and transferred that mission to Task Force Gator - about 160 troops of the Florida Guard, in Nov. Oregon also had a different batch of cavalry troops who just returned from Poland.

Here's the inside look at the Oath Keepers' plan to take over the Capitol. The veteran-dominated group used military-style planning and tactics to unseat democracy and keep Trump in power. My story with @KToropin military.com/daily-news/202… There has been a lot of media hype to the effect of, "look at this militia using military tactics and formations!" Is that entirely true? Well...it's complicated. This wasn't SEAL Team 6, but calling them larpers wouldn't be right either.

National Guard leaders grilled over ineffective sexual assault prevention and confusing bureaucracy which Guard units can operate with little oversight

military.com/daily-news/202… My pet theory on the Guard is that all the key issues it faces are state orders-related policies. Let me take you on a ride with this one.

Texas Guard leadership is denying hardship requests en mass with soldiers facing financial hardship begging to be excused from the border mission, facing losing their cars & homes. Many haven't been properly paid in months.

military.com/daily-news/202… There are a lot of issues going on at once here. One is National Guard state orders pay less than active duty and soldiers get NO benefits. They're state employees, not in the Army, under those orders.