Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas raised eyebrows recently with a tweet criticizing the Military.
Cruz shared a video of a Russian military recruitment ad featuring muscular men doing pushups and jumping out of planes, comparing it to an animated U.S. Military ad that presented a daughter of two moms, touting the military as a way to find her "inner-strength."
The recent effort to recruit Gen Z has emphasized activism and personal stories designed to frame the Military as a means for self-actualization.
The Senator said the United States was promoting a "woke, emasculated Military" and turning soldiers into "pansies."
But in a recent interview with CNN, President Joe Biden's Secretary of Defense—Lloyd Austin—made it clear he doesn't share Cruz's concerns.
Insisting that the U.S. Military would never be "too soft," Austin said:
"I think our adversaries would like to capitalize on talking points like that, you know, the Chinese, the Russians."
He continued:
"I will not lose one minute of sleep about what the Chinese leadership is saying, or what Vladimir Putin is saying. What I will focus on, and what I am focused on, is the defense of this nation, and making sure that we have what's needed to be successful."
Concluding with:
"I think we're doing a great job in terms of recruiting the right kinds of people, providing access to people from every corner, every walk of life in this country. As long as you're fit and you can qualify, there's a place for you on this team."
People were pleased with his response.
People took the opportunity to further dunk on Cruz, reminding their followers of his subservience to former President Donald Trump, even after Trump berated Cruz's wife during the 2016 Republican primaries and implied Cruz's father killed John F. Kennedy.
Cruz hasn't addressed Austin's comments.
