Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on Friday that it was a massive mistake for the U.S. military to use the phrase “diversity is our strength.”
Hegseth, who was confirmed by the Senate late last month, spoke to an audience at the Pentagon auditorium, where he addressed issues such as NATO and Afghanistan and ripped diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), Reuters reported.
“I think the single dumbest phrase in military history is ‘our diversity is our strength,’” he said. “I think our strength is our unity. Our strength is our shared purpose, regardless of our background, regardless of how we grew up, regardless of our gender, regardless of our race.”
“In this department, we will treat everyone equally. We will treat everyone with fairness. We will treat everyone with respect, and we will judge you as an individual by your merit and by your commitment to the team and…
