Department of Defense (DoD) It is the latest agency to eliminate all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs following President Donald Trump's executive order ending all federal DEI programs.
“The President’s directives (legal orders) are clear: No more DEI at the Department of Defense.” Defense Minister Pete Hegseth he wrote in a post on X.
In a handwritten note shared with the Post on X, Hegseth wrote: “The Pentagon will comply immediately. No exceptions, name changes, or delays.”
“Those who do not comply will not work here anymore,” Hegseth added.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-Los Angeles, echoed Hegseth, writing: “The best way to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race or sex is to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race or sex,” Kennedy wrote in a letter. Posted on X. “Let DEI die.”
Hegseth, 44, was sworn in on Saturday morning after receiving confirmation to lead the Pentagon on Friday after weeks of intense political drama surrounding his nomination and public scrutiny of his personal life.
“All praise and glory be to God,” Hegseth said after he was sworn in, surrounded by his wife and children. “His will will be done and we are grateful to be here.”
Hegseth is a former Minnesota National Guard officer who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and a former Fox News host.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced he has ended all DEI programs and policies at the Pentagon. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Trump's newly created Department for Government Efficiency (DOGE), which he chairs Elon MuskIt reported that approximately $420 million in existing/imminent contracts were also cancelled, primarily focused on DEI initiatives.
On Trump's inauguration day He signed an executive order Which forced all DEI offices to close and all government workers in those offices were placed on paid leave.
Pete Hegseth is surrounded by his wife and seven children as he is sworn in as the new Secretary of Defense by Vice President J.D. Vance in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House in Washington, D.C., on January 25, 2025. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP)
Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Charles Ezell sent a memo to department and agency heads and acting department heads directing them that by the end of business on January 22, they must inform all agency employees of the closure of DEI. Additionally, they are directed to tell workers directly involved in DEI to close all websites and social media accounts related to DEI, cancel any related contracts or training, and to require employees to report any efforts to hide DEI programs using coded or inaccurate language. .
The memorandum also directed agency and department heads, by noon on January 23, to provide OPM with lists of all relevant DEI offices, staff, and contracts in effect as of November 5, 2024.
By Friday, January 24, at 5 p.m., agency heads were requested to submit to OPM a written plan for implementing the reduction-in-force action with respect to DEI staff and a list of all contract descriptions or staff position descriptions that have been changed since November. 5, 2024, to hide their connection to DEI programs.
The president also signed an order making it “the official policy of the United States government to recognize only two sexes: male and female.”
President Trump has targeted gender identity and diversity in executive orders. (Getty Images/AP)
Trump issued two more Executive actions targeting DEI – An executive order to end discrimination in the workplace and higher education through preferences based on race and gender under the guise of DEI and a memorandum to remove a Biden administration policy that prioritized DEI hiring at the FAA.
Trump wrote in his executive order that he seeks to protect Americans from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. He said that these civil rights protections “serve as a cornerstone that supports equal opportunity for all Americans” and that he “has a solemn duty to ensure that these laws are enforced for the benefit of all Americans.”
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“However, today, nearly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, important and influential institutions in American society, including the federal government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, major commercial airlines, and law enforcement agencies, have adopted… Higher education has actively used dangerous, offensive, and unethical preferences based on race and gender under the guise of so-called “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) or “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility” (DEIA) that can to violate the civil rights laws of this nation,” the order states.
He adds that these illegal DEI and DEIA policies also threaten the safety of American men, women and children across the country by downplaying the importance of individual merit, competence, hard work and determination when choosing people for jobs and services in key sectors. To the American community, including all levels of government, the medical, aviation and law enforcement communities.
Prior to Trump's order, the FBI closed its DEI office in December.
Fox News' Brooke Singman, Bree Stimson, Michael Dorgan and Landon Munn contributed to this report.
Stephenie Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Tips and story ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com
