After an uproar on social media over photos of Texas National Guard deployed to Illinois appearing to be overweight, some of them have been sent back home.
A spokesperson for the Texas Military Department confirmed to Task & Purpose that “a small group” of the 200 National Guard members have been replaced after they were found to not meet military weight standards.
“Standards are back at The @DeptofWar,” wrote Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on X.
Secretary Hegseth calls on military to adopt ‘warrior ethos’ or step aside
Back in September, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gathered hundreds of generals, admirals, and high-ranking military officials in Quantico, VA, to tell them to get on board with his vision of the military or get out.
The Defense Secretary laid out a 10-point plan aimed at reshaping military standards. (TNND)
Hegseth has preached a “warrior ethos” for the military since being confirmed to his post. His refocused vision of America’s fighting force starts on the scale.
“It’s tiring to look out at combat formations or really any formation and see fat troops. Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon,” Hegseth told the members of the military in attendance.
The Defense Secretary laid out a 10-point plan aimed at reshaping military standards. Physical fitness tests will be mandatory, regardless of rank, and individuals in combat roles will be required to meet the highest male standard, meaning women will not have different criteria. Hegseth admitted that it might lead to fewer women in combat roles.
“If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it…that is not the intent, but it could be the result,” he said.
Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Penn., a former Air Force officer, said it was the wrong message to be sending to women currently serving in the military.
“The message to me would be to get out. And we need every single person who wants to serve. This is an all-volunteer service, and we need people who have all kinds of capabilities and talents,” she said after the speech.
Hegseth also dismissed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, saying the military was too focused on “woke” issues in the past. He also pushed for future promotions to be based on merit, suggesting some people were promoted because of DEI initiatives.
“No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses, no more climate change worship,” Hegseth said.
President Trump spoke after Hegseth. He told the military officials he’d always have their back in between much of his campaign rhetoric, emphasizing the need to prioritize defending America.
“Only in recent decades did politicians believe that our job is to police the far reaches of Kenya and Somalia, while America is under invasion from within, we’re under invasion from within, no different than a foreign enemy,” Trump said.
The President also justified deploying the military domestically and backed sending in the National Guard to Democrat-run cities. He said he told Hegseth to use them as “training grounds.”
Troops can stay in Illinois
National Guard troops sent to Illinois by President Donald Trump can stay in the state and under federal control, but can’t be deployed to protect federal property or go on patrol for now, an appeals court ruled Saturday.
The decision comes after federal Judge April Perry on Thursday ruled to temporarily block the National Guard deployment for at least two weeks, finding no substantial evidence that a “danger of rebellion” is brewing in Illinois during Trump’s immigration crackdown.
The appeals court on Saturday granted a pause in the case until it can hear further arguments.
The on-again, off-again deployments stem from a political and legal battle over Trump’s push to send the Guard to several U.S. cities. His administration claims crime is rampant in those cities, despite statistics not always supporting that.
If a president invokes the Insurrection Act, they can dispatch active duty military in states that fail to put down an insurrection or defy federal law. However, Perry said she found no substantial evidence that a “danger of rebellion” is brewing in Illinois during Trump’s immigration crackdown.
She followed up Friday with an opinion that cites a mix of law and history, including the Federalist Papers, which were written in 1787-88 to support ratification of the U.S. Constitution.
“There has been no showing that the civil power has failed,” Perry said. “The agitators who have violated the law by attacking federal authorities have been arrested. The courts are open, and the marshals are ready to see that any sentences of imprisonment are carried out. Resort to the military to execute the laws is not called for.”
The judge said there was significant evidence that federal agents have been able to carry out their work, noting “huge increases in arrests and deportations.”
The 500 Guard members from Texas and Illinois were mostly based at a U.S. Army Reserve Center in Elwood, southwest of Chicago. A small number were sent to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Broadview.