Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Matt Gaetz Slammed For Throwing Tantrum About 'Wokeism' In Tense Exchange With Defense Secretary

Matt Gaetz Slammed For Throwing Tantrum About 'Wokeism' In Tense Exchange With Defense Secretary
C-SPAN

Republican Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida was slammed after he threw a tantrum about "wokeism" in a tense exchange with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that prompted Austin to accuse him of feeling "embarrassed" of his own country.

Gaetz, speaking during a House Armed Services Committee budget hearing, accused the Pentagon of strategic failures, suggesting they'd prioritized "wokeism" and socialism over military preparedness.


Gaetz pressed Austin about a talk he gave on democratic socialism at the National Defense University. Conservatives seized on the speech as evidence "woke" politics had impacted the Pentagon's prognostications regarding Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

You can watch the exchange in the video below.

Gaetz said:

"You guys said that Russia would overrun Ukraine in 36 days."
"You said that the Taliban would be kept at bay for months."
"You totally blew those calls, and maybe we would be better at them if the National Defense University actually worked a little more on strategy and a little less on wokeism."

Austin defended the Pentagon, saying it obviously had not struck Gaetz "Russia has not overrun Ukraine because of what we've done and what our allies have done."

Gaetz later said the military had dropped the ball on the development of hypersonic weapons, which are primarily intended to be used offensively to destroy high-value enemy assets, including command-and-control facilities. He claimed his criticisms are not about "just the hypersonics."

To that end, Austin praised the United States military as the "most capable, most combat-credible force in the world."

When Austin accused Gaetz of feeling "embarrassed" of his country, Gaetz issued the terse response:

"I'm embarrassed by your leadership."
"It seems the Biden administration is trying to destroy our military by force-feeding it woke-ism."

Gaetz was heavily criticized following the exchange.

A few of Gaetz's critics suggested it is inappropriate for him to question Austin given he has never served in the military and is currently embroiled in a federal child sex trafficking investigation.

Federal authorities are investigating Gaetz on child sex trafficking charges after it emerged the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched a probe into whether he paid a 17-year-old girl and took her across state lines for sexual purposes.

Gaetz denied allegations he violated sex trafficking laws and engaged in other sexual misconduct while in office by citing the age of consent.

Critics seized on these facts and others, saying Gaetz had grossly disrespected Austin.




Conservatives have long attacked the military for its initiatives focused on diversity and inclusion in addition to its efforts to purge White nationalist and White supremacist extremism from its ranks.

Last summer, in a statement designed to denigrate his progressive opponents and the military, Donald Trump Jr. claimed the United States armed forces failed to predict the Taliban's resurgence in Afghanistan because its generals were "too busy" learning about critical race theory and gender identity.

Trump Jr.'s statement misconstrued remarks made by General Mark Milley, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, before Republican members of Congress who'd claimed the military is indoctrinating troops by teaching critical race theory, a body of legal and academic scholarship that aims to examine how disparate racial outcomes have shaped public policy via often implicit social and institutional dynamics.

At the time, Milley noted critical race theory is taught at West Point because it's a college.

More from Trending

Ribvar Karimi and Morgan Gardner Karimi
Morgan Karimi/Facebook

Alabama Woman 'Blindsided' After ICE Detains Her Trump-Supporting Iranian Husband

Another day, another MAGA face eaten by a leopard.

The "it wasn't supposed to happen to me" movement claimed two more victims on Sunday, June 22, when Ribvar Karimi was abducted by the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS's) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in a sweep that included 11 Iranians.

Keep ReadingShow less
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Alex Wong/Getty Images

RFK Jr. Admits That Banning Fluoridated Water Will Cause 'More Cavities'—But He's OK With That

Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was criticized after admitting in a Fox News interview with Harris Faulkner that his proposed fluoridated water ban would likely lead people to have more cavities—but defended the move nonetheless.

While fluoride is not federally mandated in drinking water, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had long recommended its inclusion. Fluoride helps prevent cavities by strengthening enamel, and numerous studies have shown that fluoridated water reduces tooth decay in both children and adults.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Jesse Watters discussing Zohran Mamdani
Fox News

Jesse Watters Dragged After Trying To Give Mamdani A Scary Nickname That's Actually Kind Of Epic

Fox News personality Jesse Watters was widely mocked after he tried to give New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani a scary nickname in the vein of Conan the Destroyer—only for it to backfire considerably.

Watters is the latest member of the GOP to lash out at Mamdani, a democratic socialist who handily defeated former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary last week.

Keep ReadingShow less
A man sitting on a couch
man sitting on sofa
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

People Sound Off On What Caused Them To Fire Their Therapist

We thankfully live in a world where there's no longer a stigma surrounding therapy.

Some people simply need professional help to deal with ongoing problems or even to get through the day.

Keep ReadingShow less
Andy Ogles; Zohran Mamdani
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images (left and right)

MAGA Rep Slammed After Calling For Mamdani To Be Stripped Of His Citizenship And Deported Over Rap Lyric

Tennessee Republican Andy Ogles was called out after he shared a letter he sent to Attorney General Pam Bondi urging her to denaturalize and deport New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani over a lyric in a rap song Mamdani released in 2017.

Mamdani ran a campaign centered around economic populism, arguing that the city, a global financial center, has grown unaffordable for everyday residents, citing soaring rents and grocery prices, and outlining policies aimed at reducing the cost of living.

Keep ReadingShow less