WASHINGTON -โค Former president Donald Trump and Fox News host Pete Hegseth are scheduled to address an โestimated several hundred U.S. military leaders this week, signaling a potential shift in โฃdefense prioritiesโข and a demand for unified support behind teh management’s forthcoming strategy. The meeting, requiring in-person attendance from commanders across the globe, is drawing scrutiny fromโฃ national security analystsโข who question its โpurpose and potential impact on military morale.
the gathering comes as โthe trump โคadministration prepares to unveil a defense policy that diverges from โdecades of precedent, reportedlyโ prioritizing the Northern hemisphere over traditional focus areas like Europe and Asia. Experts suggest the meeting aimsโฃ to โsecure buy-in from โtop military officials for this new direction,โฃ which includes increased domestic deployments and a more assertive role for the โmilitary in border security and law enforcement. โฃ
Brookings institution Director of Research for Foreign Policy, Michael O’Hanlon, characterized the mandatory in-person meeting as “theatrics” and an attempt to “impose” rather than foster a genuine exchange of views. Bryanโฃ Clark, a senior fellow at โฃthe Hudson Institute,โ anticipates โthe discussionโค will center on the administration’s evolving defense strategy.
Hegseth has been aโค vocal proponent of expanded military involvement in domestic โขoperations, including securing the U.S.-mexico border, supporting “law enforcement surges” in American cities, and authorizing actions against suspected drug traffickersโ in the Caribbean. Thes initiatives,Clark explained,represent a significant departure โfrom established norms.
“I think thay’re trying to set the tone, set โคthe context, for these generals and admirals to say the strategy we have coming out is very different than whatโข you’re usedโ to – we need youโ to all be on โขboard with it,” Clark said. Theโ requirement for in-person attendance,despite logistical challenges posed by global time zones,is intended to underscore the importance of the administration’s message. “It’s a wayโ of demonstrating that this is significant,” Clark added.