Hegseth Sparks Backlash After Distributing “Field Manual” Distributing Speeches to Troops

QUANTICO, Va. — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faced sharp criticism on Wednesday after issuing a self-styled military manual to hundreds of U.S. troops, featuring a foreword by President Donald Trump promising not to ask service members to “fight dumb wars” amid an ongoing conflict with Iran.

The 144-page bound book, bearing the labels “The War Department” and “Field Manual,” was distributed to approximately 600 junior officers and enlisted leaders attending Hegseth’s “State of the Force” address at Marine Corps Base Quantico.

Rather than standard tactical doctrine, the publication compiles a collection of Hegseth’s past speeches, including addresses delivered to military brass and executives at SpaceX’s Starbase facility.

In the foreword, President Trump wrote that re-establishing the “Department of War” represents “much more than a name change,” echoing recent social media statements in which he vowed to unleash troops to be “violent, lethal and unstoppable.”

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The distribution of the text drew immediate rebuke from national security figures, political observers, and former administration officials who questioned the propriety of binding and circulating cabinet speeches as official military literature.

Luke Schleusener, a former speechwriter for three past Defense Secretaries, publicly criticized the move on social media, noting that previous administrations never produced such materials. “It’s beneath the dignity of the office,” Schleusener remarked.

Others drew parallels to state-directed political literature, with Pat Dennis, president of the Democratic research group American Bridge 21st Century, comparing the text to “Xi Jinping Thought”—the political ideology compiled for Chinese Communist Party members.

During his address, Hegseth defended the administration’s strategy while launching a harsh attack on press coverage of the U.S. military presence in Iran, which has reached its seventh month.

Hegseth characterized critical media reporting as “partisan activism” and “fundamentally anti-American,” labeling it “a national betrayal” and “treason.” He further announced plans to reduce the military’s ranks of generals and admirals by 20 percent.

The controversial manual comes as military analysts and scholars continue to debate the strategic rationale of the conflict in Iran. Military historian Bret Devereaux previously described the military engagement as an “unwise gamble,” contrasting the administration’s claims of avoiding ill-advised conflicts with the reality of the ongoing war.

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