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Home Front: Politix
Claim: SecDef Hegseth Gets a Rude and Disrespectful Welcome by US Military Command in Germany
2025-02-13
Do you agree that there was deliberate insult by the senior American officers in Germany, dear Reader? I am not qualified to judge. Skipping all the fun stuff when Secretary Hegseth worked out with the troops, which we’ve seen and discussed already, and going straight to the reception:
[RedState] Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth began a tour of Europa
...the land mass occupying the space between the English Channel and the Urals, also known as Moslem Lebensraum...
Tuesday, starting at the headquarters of US European Command at Patch Barracks in Stuttgart, Germany. The newly minted SecDef has a heavy schedule in front of him, inspecting US forces in Europe and dealing with his first meeting with NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis....
. He is obviously trying to move beyond the controversies associated with his confirmation. He is also trying to lead by example and reverse the cultural rot in the US military by force of will.

He traveled to Europe by way of a C-17 cargo plane with a command pod rather than in a Gulfstream executive jet.

He traveled with his wife and child. This has become something of a standard image of all Trump Cabinet secretaries. Trump has had his grandchild at his desk. Sean Duffy's family is prominent in events. JD Vance's wife and kids travel with him. Musk's kid was at the presser he held yesterday.
Musk Junior’s mother is reportedly not happy that Dad is taking him to work, but that’s not our problem…
The image of family as a central point in life rather than an adjunct to your job is striking when compared to previous administrations, including Trump 1.0. See my colleague Brandon Morse's post on the subject: Elon Musk Is Demonstrating the Best Pro-Life Strategy Right Now and It's Heartwarming to See — RedState.

While the informal side went well, the official visit was, in my view, a lot more problematic.

These images are from the official reception.

[X]

I'm old school on uniforms. I think the custom of wearing BDUs (utilities, fatigues, whatever you want to call the field uniform) all the time is horrendous. When I was a young officer, you weren't allowed to wear BDUs off-post. Period. You couldn't go to a fast food place or run an errand on the way home or at lunch wearing BDUs. In my view, if you can't break out the Class A uniform to welcome the SecDef and note the color guard is in dress uniform, then there is no possible occasion that calls for them. But, if you do wear BDUs to greet the SecDef, show him the respect of wearing a fresh set. Meeting the head of the Department of Defense in wrinkled BDUs is a calculated insult because I really don't believe this three-star or his aide are that stupid.

More evidence to back up my contention that the greeting was intended to show Hegseth how little the commanding general thought of him, perhaps for the first time in the history of the Defense Department, the Secretary of Defense was heckled by military wives.

At the same time, middle school, I say again, middle school students walked out to protest the end of DEI programs. This was absolutely organic to the middle school and had no helping hand from the command structure in Stuttgart because if there is one thing that really sets off 6th graders, it is losing their DEI classes.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. If you're willing to greet your boss in wrinkled clothes and allow him to be heckled by dependent wives, you can imagine what else is going on out of sight.

Related:
Pete Hegseth 02/11/2025 Defense secretary announces renaming Fort Liberty to Fort Bragg, again
Pete Hegseth 02/07/2025 US Marine, 3 contractors killed in aircraft crash in southern Philippines
Pete Hegseth 02/07/2025 Border Chief Homan Says Raid on Tren de Aragua Gang Was Leaked

Posted by:trailing wife

#20  49 Pan, the brief video tweet of the wives can be seen at the article link. Click on the headline, or go here.
Posted by: trailing wife   2025-02-13 14:23  

#19  Yes to both 17 & 18. Astute observations, but exactly what might be expected from this crowd.
Posted by: Besoeker   2025-02-13 12:12  

#18  I would be very surprised if Hegseth was interested in spit and polish stuff. Maybe his wife could have met with spouses.
Posted by: Super Hose   2025-02-13 12:05  

#17  Something else, Hegseth wasn't dressed formally. He's not wearing a tie, and I get the feeling he has no more love for the monkey suits than the rank and file. He seems to be the very hands on, "Let's get to work" type, not one demanding pomp and ceremony so he can appear fancy and 'special'.
Posted by: Silentbrick   2025-02-13 11:56  

#16  49 Pan, wouldn't a visit from the SecDef be considered a "formal occasion", at least for the general?
Posted by: Rambler   2025-02-13 11:40  

#15  In the 90's I was stationed in Germany. We stopped wearing Class A's for event and wore what we called the war fighters uniform. A's were only worn for formal occasions, and monthly uniform inspections associated with payday activities. With the new BDU, around 9/11 starching and pressing the BDU was stopped. I think the official guideline said the constant starch and press affected the IR capability. This was for the Army, not sure about the other branches. I would like to hear the video of the wives. They were probably laughing at how fat the general looked in comparison to his new boss...
Posted by: 49 Pan   2025-02-13 10:46  

#14  You're welcome!
Posted by: European Conservative   2025-02-13 08:59  

#13  Thank you, European Conservative.

Posted by: trailing wife   2025-02-13 08:51  

#12  Local and theater commanders can terminate 'accompanied' status effecting dependents. It's an administrative action.
DoD schools need a hard and fast notice of unacceptable practices with a follow up.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2025-02-13 07:48  

#11  
OBTW: Shouldn't have those wives be put of Delinquent Report by the MP's?

Which goes in the Mil-Jacket of the husband, and is seen the next review cycle?

Wouldn't such family rebellious activities affect any soldier's DOD Security Tickets & Clearances?
Posted by: NN2N1   2025-02-13 07:06  

#10  

Let us hope and pray they don't Ron Brown him.
But the C-17 is a better built aircraft than a CT-43.

Posted by: NN2N1   2025-02-13 07:05  

#9  The emergency services confirmed that at least 20 people were injured, including two seriously. One person was resuscitated on site, apparently a child. Munich's Lord Mayor Dieter Reiter also confirmed that children were among the injured. “I am deeply shocked”, said Reiter.

Gerhard Peschke, spokesman for the Munich fire department, explained that it was not possible to give an exact number of casualties as some of the injured had taken shelter in the surrounding buildings. The group of people were participants in a strike called by the Verdi trade union. The exact location of the incident is Munich's Stiglmaierplatz.

The exact circumstances are still under investigation. However, as BR learned from police sources, the police do not believe that the incident was an accident. The identity of the driver is still unclear.

https://www.br.de/nachrichten/bayern/muenchen-auto-faehrt-in-menschenmenge,UcfvdQz

There's a press conference right now. More info to follow.
Posted by: European Conservative   2025-02-13 06:37  

#8  Thanks Besoeker. I'll keep you updated.
Posted by: European Conservative   2025-02-13 06:35  

#7  /\ Published. Thanks EC.
Posted by: Besoeker   2025-02-13 06:30  

#6  Thanks TW. Looks like a DEI whiner.

BDU's are not an issue. I doubt Heg cared one way or the other.
Posted by: Besoeker   2025-02-13 06:27  

#5  @tw
Just submitted an article about a possible terror attack in Munich
Posted by: European Conservative   2025-02-13 06:27  

#4  Besoeker, the tweeted video labelled as wives can be seen at the article link — scroll down.
Posted by: trailing wife   2025-02-13 02:06  

#3  Doubt it. Pretty common to meet in BDUs on base. More formal, Class A uniform but otherwise BDUs. Overwhemling support in the military for Hegseth.
Posted by: DarthVader   2025-02-13 02:05  

#2  Heckled by wives? WTF ?

Those assignments can become "unaccompanied tours" at the stroke of a pen. Please get a handle on your dependents or send them home. Out-o-pocket off post housing in the vicinity of Stuttgart could get to be a bit pricey.

Gotta wonder if it was actually German Nationals in the crowd. Solutions abound for that issue as well.



Posted by: Besoeker   2025-02-13 01:42  

#1  This'll change when the DoD order comes out.

No longer taken advantage of: Trump signs order prioritizing 'unified' US foreign policy front

ensure that "officers and employees faithfully implement the President's policies"
Posted by: Skidmark   2025-02-13 00:36  

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