Hush, Queen

The military has a saying: “The standard you walk past is the standard you set.”

Because when an officer sees a soldier with an unshaven face and fails to correct him, the new standard becomes “it’s fine to skip shaving.” When the highest-ranking military officer (e.g., Mark Milley) is corpulent, the new standard becomes “it’s fine to be fat.” And when the U.S. military fails to win wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and no general officers are fired for combat ineffectiveness, the new standard becomes “it’s fine to lose wars.”

For more than 20 years, too many leaders “walked past the standard.”

They walked past the standard on haircuts, hygiene, and grooming. They walked past the standard on physical fitness, particularly in combat arms units. They walked past the standard on unit cohesion and military discipline. Over time, small deviations from the standards eroded the quality and readiness of our military personnel, and the character of our military institution. For proof, watch a video of the military parade in Washington, D.C. this past June. Formations were sloppy, undisciplined, and poorly trained. 

“If not, they’re not standards,” Hegseth said. “They’re just suggestions, suggestions that get our sons and daughters killed.” Most importantly, Hegseth said he wants a culture where leaders enforce standards. No more “walking on eggshells” for fear of retribution from disgruntled troops. No more anonymous complaints undermining a leader’s authority. “These directives are designed to take the monkey off your back and put you, the leadership, back in the driver’s seat,” Hegseth said. “Move out with urgency because we have your back. I have your back, and the commander in chief has your back.”

It was a back-to-basics speech, and exactly what officers needed to hear from Hegseth and President Trump. “Most of [the speech] was stuff we say over a beer at the O Club,” said a retired Marine general.

Which made the speech unacceptable to Peggy Noonan, an opinion columnist for the Wall Street Journal. From her perch on the Upper East Side, the old songbird of a bygone political era splattered on Hegseth’s head, declaring that military leadership has little to do with standards for fitness or combat readiness. She whined that Hegseth was a “drama queen” who watched “‘Platoon’ too much as a child.” Her column was full of bile and class prejudice. Most of her words could have been written by Paul Krugman or Graydon Carter, pundits from the political Left who despise Trump and his cabinet as much for their politics as who they represent: real America.  

Out in real America, people live with the consequences of reckless choices and ill-conceived plans hatched in places like California, New York, and Washington, DC. People see the decline in standards for the military but also in other segments of American society. In standards for education. In standards for customer service. In standards for public behavior. In standards for family life. In standards for religious leadership. Wherever progressives have found a standard, they have worked tirelessly to lower it – or negate it entirely.

Because a standard is, after all, a reflection of a collective value. We create standards to ensure that the values of our culture are upheld: indeed, so that a shared culture itself can be maintained. Yes; standards exclude some people from certain benefits and opportunities. But certain exclusions are necessary, if only to maintain the integrity and functions of our institutions. The political Left hates standards for all of these reasons. But more than anything, they despise standards because they imply the existence of a norm, and justify judgments based on the norm.

For President Trump, that norm is merit. In his own remarks to the generals and admirals, Trump said the purpose of the American military is “not to protect anyone’s feelings, it’s to protect our republic […] to protect our country,” and that’s why the Trump administration is “bringing back a focus on fitness, ability, character, and strength.” This is the latest chapter in Trump’s ongoing effort to restore trust in our government by reconstructing the character and integrity of its institutions.

If Hegseth succeeds in revitalizing the U.S. military institution, his example will set a new standard for leaders of organizations far beyond national defense.

Adam Ellwanger is a professor at University of Houston – Downtown, where he teaches rhetoric and writing. Follow him at @1HereticalTruth on X. John J. Waters is a lawyer. He served as a deputy assistant secretary of Homeland Security from 2020-21. Follow him at @JohnJWaters1 on X.