A combat veteran had a sharp warning after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's comments about women in the military and suggested "ripple effects" would come after his big speech, asking, "Are people going to stay in?"
Major Kyleanne, a retired combat veteran and CEO of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, told CNN anchors Brianna Keilar and Boris Sanchez that using a "culture war" is "distracting from real military readiness." Hegseth's comments could also impact recruiting — a top priority.
"There's real concerns about recruiting, these big recruiting booms that we've seen are largely driven by women joining the military," she said. "But there's also a lot of concerns about retention. Are people going to stay in if that's what's going to happen? But also what it does to our veteran population."
Hunter also pointed to veteran mental health as a major concern. She suggested that Hegseth's comments could have a negative message for struggling veterans.
"We are hearing from veterans, men and women alike, that remarks like this have a real impact on veteran mental health and how they feel about their own services, you know, their own service. And were they actually worthy to be in the service? And so, you know, while there's a focus on the active duty right now, we absolutely need to be focused on that aspect," she added. "We also need to be looking at what are the ripple effects of this rhetoric due to the mental health of our veteran population, as well."
She pointed to current Pentagon changes as concerning, especially for women in the military.
"I have deep concerns about the shutting down of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services," or DACOWITS, she said.
"I had the honor of serving on DACOWITS twice. And what I can say is that the recommendations that we made for women in the services benefited everyone, and increased military readiness increased the authority and increased unit cohesion, whether it was on ensuring there was properly fitting gear and equipment for everyone who goes downrange into harm's way, or ensuring that there is adequate familial support so people retain and stay in the military. These are our actions that impact everyone. And I think with the loss of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women's Services and with these statements that, you know, show that women may not be adhering to the same standards, which is just blatantly not true."
She also argued that merit-based, skill level and achievement are important in the military, not implicit or explicit bias.
"I think it's unfortunate when statements like this get made because it leads to division," she said.
It should be a meritocracy, she explained, and initiatives under DACOWITS removed pronouns from fitness reports or officer qualification records so people would be promoted based on their skills, achievements, and merit.
"And I will say from my time in the military, I had the opportunity that I was judged objectively against my peers. And where I succeeded, I succeeded all my merits and where I fell short, I fell short of my own shortcomings."
The military has tried to make it more common for women to enter the military. But Hegseth's words were the opposite.
"And so the very claims that they're wanting, if they want a better meritocracy system, they are dismantling the offices and the programs that made it a meritocracy to begin with, which is a little counterintuitive in my mind," Hunter said.