The criticism surrounding President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon hit the military’s top brass Wednesday.
Mark Milley, the retired U.S. Army general and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, clapped back at the notion that women aren’t equipped to serve in combat roles – a view that conflicts with those expressed by Fox News weekend co-host Pete Hegseth, who Trump tapped as the country’s next defense secretary.
“Don’t lecture me about women in combat,” Milley said at a national security innovation event hosted by the Pallas Foundation, as reported by Politico. “Women have been in combat, and it doesn't matter if that 7.62 [caliber round] hits you in the chest. No one gives a s--- if it's a woman or a guy to pull that trigger, you're still dead.”
The comments came after Hegseth called to remove thousands of women from combat roles. Trump and Hegseth have both been critical of the military and what they refer to as a "woke" general, according to Politico.
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"It hasn't made us more effective, hasn't made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated," he told podcast host Shawn Ryan earlier this month.
Milley wasn’t alone in his position. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters earlier Wednesday that women should not be taken out of frontline combat roles.
“I think our women add significant value to the United States military and we should never change that,” Austin said, according to the report.
Politico noted that he also had a message for women.
"We need you, we have faith in you, we are appreciative of your service, and you add value to the finest and most lethal fighting force on Earth.”
