Leading military leaders have condemned the viral comments made by Tucker Carlson in his program on women in uniform. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin shares the “disgust” that many leaders have expressed about the monologue.
Carlson said during his show on Tuesday that the new standards of appearance and inclusive military uniforms for women were mocking the US military. In a monologue, Carlson said that China’s military has become “more masculine”, while “our military needs to become, as Joe Biden says, more feminine”.
On Monday, International Women’s Day, President Joe Biden introduced candidates for combatant commands, who would be the second and third women to lead combatant commands. He talked about the steps the military is taking, how to update preparation standards, how to allow short ponytails, to make the environment for all forces more inclusive.
Carlson called these measures “mockery of the US military”.
Kirby said on Thursday that “what we are absolutely not going to do is take personal advice from a talk show host or the Chinese military.”
Kirby was asked if Carlson should apologize, and Kirby said he expects Carlson to realize the mistake he made in the comments that “essentially downgraded the entire US army and how we defend and serve this country”.
Carlson responded with a nine-minute monologue on Thursday night, saying that “the Department of Defense has launched a large and coordinated public relations offensive against this show”.
“Since when did the Pentagon declare war on a domestic news operation? I don’t remember that happening,” said Carlson.
Other senior members of the U.S. Armed Forces gave their views on Thursday about Carlson’s comments. In a viral video, US Marine Corps Master Sergeant Artillery Scott Stalker, the Senior Enlisted Leader of the United States Space Command, said Carlson’s opinion is “based, in fact, on zero days in the forces armed forces “. He also asked the military to “get back to work” and said “let’s remember that these opinions were made by an individual who has never served a single day in his life”.
“Let me offer my opinion, my opinion is based on 28 years of real service in the armed forces, 28 years in the Marine Corps and combat operations at sea and in Garrison,” he said. “And so he was talking specifically about pregnant women in the armed forces today and how it makes us less lethal and less prepared and less ready. Let me tell you how wrong he is. These decisions were made by medical professionals, commanders and our civilians leadership that allows women to have more time with their children, to recover, to stay in shape and prepared, to take that time that our medical professionals know is necessary, which in fact makes us a more lethal force and ready and adequate. Ready to face the wars of today and tomorrow. ”
On Twitter, the US Army did not respond directly to Carlson’s comments, but 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 veterans responded to Carlson’s comments on Twitter, including Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth, who was one of the first women in the Army to fly combat missions during the Iraq War.
“F *** Tucker Carlson”, Duckworth tweeted from his campaign account.
When deployed in Iraq in 2004, Duckworth was flying a helicopter that was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG). Duckworth lost both legs and partial use of his right arm in the incident.
“While he practiced his two steps, American warriors hunted Al Qaeda and proved the strength of American women,” Duckworth tweeted, referring to Carlson’s appearance on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” program in 2006. “Happy late international women’s day for everyone except Tucker, who even I can dance better than.”
Twitter user Heather Tregle, who, according to her biography, is an officer with the Army Attorney General (JAG), said that being a mother while serving “does not make fun of the military.”
“I had 2 children while serving in the Army, deployed in 2 combat zones, advised commanders at home and in war and graduated from the Naval Warfare School,” she said. “I can assure you that my presence does not mock the military. If you are looking for a mockery, look in the mirror.”
Another individual tweeted that his comments “really pissed her off” and took the opportunity to post a picture of her in October 1999, when she was in basic Army training in Fort Jackson, South Carolina.
General Jacqueline Van Ovost, commander of the Air Mobility Command at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, made no direct reference to Carlson, but instead tweeted about the women who served as members of the Air Force.
“There are almost 70,000 qualified and amazing women #USAF #Airmen”, Van Ovost tweeted. “For years we have evolved and will continue to evolve, eliminating outdated policies that prevent ANY woman from reaching her full potential.”
“Inclusion is our strength,” tweeted the general, “it will be the difference between winning and losing.”
Van Ovost is Biden’s choice to lead the United States Transport Command. In announcing Van Ovost and his choice for US Southern Command, Lieutenant General Laura Richardson, Mr. Biden said: “We need girls and boys, who grew up dreaming of serving for their country, to know that this is what the generals in the United States Armed Forces look alike. ”