Senior military leaders have condemned Tucker Carlson’s viral comments about his show about women in uniform. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin shares the “disgust” many senior leaders have expressed over the monologue.
Carlson said on his show on Tuesday that new grooming standards and inclusive military uniforms for women were a mockery of the US military. In a monologue, Carlson said that the Chinese military has become “more masculine”, while “our military, as Joe Biden says, needs to become more feminine”.
On Monday, International Women’s Day, President Joe Biden introduced the nominees for combatant commandos who would be the second and third women to ever lead combatant commandos. He spoke about the measures the military is taking, such as updating grooming standards, such as allowing short ponytails, to make the environment more inclusive for all armed forces.
Carlson called these measures “a mockery of the US military.”
Kirby said Thursday, “What we absolutely will not do is seek personnel advice from a talk show host or the Chinese military.”
Kirby was asked if Carlson should apologize, and Kirby said he hopes Carlson realizes the mistake he made in the comments that “essentially humiliated the entire US military and how we defend and serve this country.”
Carlson responded with a nine-minute monologue Thursday night, saying, “The Department of Defense has launched a major and coordinated PR offensive against this show.”
“Since when did the Pentagon declare war on a domestic news operation? I don’t remember that ever happened,” Carlson said.
Other senior members of the US military weighed in on Carlson’s comments on Thursday. In a viral clip, US Marine Corps Master Gunnery Sergeant Scott Stalker, the Senior Enlisted Leader of the United States Space Command, said Carlson’s opinion is “based on basically zero days in the armed forces.” He also called on the military to “get back to work” saying “let’s not forget that those opinions were made by a person who has never served a day of his life.”
“Let me give you my opinion, my opinion is based on 28 years of actual service in the military, 28 years in the Marine Corps and combat operations at sea and with Garrison,” he said. And so he was talking specifically about pregnant women in today’s armed forces and how it makes us less deadly and less fit and less willing. Let me tell you how he is wrong. Those decisions were made by medical professionals, by commanders and ours. citizens. strength. Ready for the wars of today and tomorrow. ”
On Twitter, the US military did not directly respond to Carlson’s comments, however posted an image of a woman in uniform with the caption “I am an American soldier. I will never accept defeat. I will never give up.”
Numerous female veterans responded to Carlson’s comments on Twitter, including Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, who was one of the first women in the military to conduct combat missions during the Iraq War.
“F *** Tucker Carlson,” Duckworth tweeted from her campaign account.
When Duckworth was deployed to Iraq in 2004, he piloted a helicopter that was hit by a missile grenade (RPG). Duckworth lost both legs and partial use of her right arm in the incident.
“While he was practicing his two steps, American women warriors hunted Al Qaeda and proved the strength of America’s women,” Duckworth tweeted, referring to Carlson’s performance on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” in 2006. “Happy belated International Women’s Day to everyone except Tucker, who even I can dance better.”
Twitter user Heather Tregle, who according to her biography is an Army Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer, said being a mother while serving is “no mockery of the military.”
“I’ve had 2 children while serving in the military, deployed in 2 combat zones, advised commanders at home and at war, and graduated from Naval War College,” she said. “I can assure you that my presence does not make fun of the military. If you’re looking for a mockery, look in the mirror. ‘
Another person tweeted that his comments “irritated her enormously” and took the opportunity to post a photo of herself from October 1999, while she was undergoing basic military training in Fort Jackson, South Carolina.
General Jacqueline Van Ovost, commander of Air Mobility Command at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, did not refer directly to Carlson, but instead tweeted about the “kick-ass” female Air Force members who served.
“There are nearly 70K qualified, kick-ass female #USAF #Airmen,” Van Ovost tweeted“For years we have evolved and will continue to evolve, getting rid of outdated policies that prevent EVERY woman from reaching her full potential.”
“Inclusion is our strength,” the general tweeted, “it will be the difference between winning and losing.”
Van Ovost is Mr. Biden’s choice to lead the US Transportation Command. Announcing Van Ovost and his choice to join the US Southern Command, Lieutenant General Laura Richardson, Mr. Biden, said, “We need little girls and boys who have both grown up with the dream of serving for their country. US armed forces look like. ”