Latest news with #TheMichaelSmerconishProgram
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Retired Navy admiral criticizes Hegseth over Harvey Milk ship renaming
Retired Adm. James Stavridis said he doesn't agree with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's decision to rename the USNS Harvey, removing the commemoration of gay rights activist Harvey Milk. Milk, a former service member, served as a political official in California and championed rights for the local LGBTQ community before he was assassinated. 'I am scratching my head about renaming the USS — USNS, to be accurate — Harvey Milk, because Harvey Milk was gay. We all know that. But today, gay sailors serve openly and with a great deal of pride in the U.S. military,' the former supreme allied commander of NATO said during a Friday episode of 'The Michael Smerconish Program.' He noted that past military leaders have been both gay and successful at accomplishing their mission while serving. 'I know many who are gay and are very competent war-fighting sailors. So when the secretary of Defense says, 'Hey, I'm renaming this in order to restore the warrior ethos,' I just don't get that at all,' Stavridis said. 'There have been gay soldiers in militaries going back centuries. I'm Greek American. Arguably the greatest general in history, Alexander the Great was gay and, oh, by the way, people serving at the highest level of the U.S. Cabinet today, like secretary of the Treasury, who I think is doing a pretty good job with a tough hand of cards, [Scott] Bessent, is openly gay.' Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is the second openly gay man to serve in a Cabinet position. He hasn't commented on the Trump administration's efforts to remove aspects of gender identity from the military branch. Stavridis, however, said the potential ship renaming is uncanny, especially during a month established to celebrate gay rights. 'I don't get it on why we need to rename this ship this moment and also to do it during Pride Month. … I don't agree with it,' he said. Reports emerged Wednesday alleging that Hegseth has ordered the oil fleet to lose its name. However, officials have yet to make a public announcement confirming the move. 'Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD [Department of Defense] installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos,' chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement to The Hill when asked about potential renaming. 'Any potential renaming(s) will be announced after internal reviews are complete.' USNS Harvey Milk was a part of the John Lewis class of oil replenishment ships, which touts the names of other civil rights leaders including Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Harriet Tubman. Officials are also considering removing their names, according to reports from CBS. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Retired Navy admiral criticizes Hegseth over Harvey Milk ship renaming
Admiral James Stavridis (Ret.) said he doesn't agree with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's decision to rename the USNS Harvey, removing the commemoration of gay activist Harvey Milk. Milk, a former service member, served as a political official in California and championed rights for the local LGBTQ community before being assassinated. 'I am scratching my head about renaming the USS, USNS, to be accurate, Harvey Milk, because Harvey Milk was gay. We all know that. But today, gay sailors serve openly and with a great deal of pride in the US military,' the former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO said during a Friday episode of The Michael Smerconish Program. He noted that past military leaders have been both gay and successful at accomplishing their mission while serving. 'I know many who are gay and are very competent war-fighting sailors. So when the Secretary of Defense says, Hey, I'm renaming this in order to restore the warrior ethos, I just don't get that at all,' Stavridis said. 'There have been gay soldiers in militaries going back centuries. I'm Greek American. Arguably the greatest general in history, Alexander the Great was gay and, oh, by the way, people serving at the highest level of the US Cabinet today, like Secretary of the Treasury, who I think is doing a pretty good job with a tough hand of cards, [Scott] Bessent, is openly gay.' Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is the second openly gay man to serve in a Cabinet position. He hasn't openly commented on the Trump administration's efforts to remove aspects of gender identity from the military branch. Stavridis, however, said the potential ship renaming is uncanny, especially during a month established to celebrate gay rights. 'I don't get it on why we need to rename this ship this moment, and also to do it during Pride month […] I don't agree with it,' he said. Reports emerged on Wednesday alleging that Hegseth has ordered the oil fleet to lose its name. However, officials have yet to make a public announcement confirming the move. 'Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos,' chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement to The Hill when asked about potential renaming. 'Any potential renaming(s) will be announced after internal reviews are complete.' USNS Harvey Milk was a part of the John Lewis class of oil replenishment ships, which touts other civil rights leaders including Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Harriet Tubman. Officials are also considering removing their names according to reports from CBS.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Navy Admiral On Pete Hegseth Renaming Harvey Milk Ship: ‘I Don't Agree With It'
WASHINGTON – Retired Navy Adm. James Stavridis said Friday that he disagrees with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordering the Navy to take the rare step of renaming the USNS Harvey Milk because Milk was gay. 'I am scratching my head about renaming the USS USNS … Harvey Milk,' Stavridis said on SiriusXM's 'The Michael Smerconish Program.' 'Because Harvey Milk was gay, we all know that. But today, gay sailors serve openly and with a great deal of pride in the U.S. military. I know many who are gay and are very competent, war-fighting sailors,' Stavridis said. 'So when [the] secretary of defense says, 'Hey, I'm renaming this in order to restore the warrior ethos,' I just don't get that at all.' Milk, who was a San Francisco politician in the 1970s and the first openly gay man elected to public office in California, served in the Navy for four years during the Korean War. He was forced to resign in 1955 rather than face a court-martial for being gay. A trailblazer in the LGBTQ+ community, Milk was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 and honored with a Navy ship named after him in 2016. Hegseth's order is unusual, and its timing — coinciding with Pride Month in June — was intentional, per a report. Asked for comment about Hegseth timing his order with Pride Month, a Defense Department spokesperson shared a statement from chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell that didn't actually answer the question. 'Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos. Any potential renaming(s) will be announced after internal reviews are complete,' Parnell said in his statement. Asked again for comment on the timing of Hegseth's order to remove Milk's name from the Navy ship, the Defense Department spokesperson said only, 'I do not have any additional information to provide.' Stavridis, who served as the commander of the U.S. Southern Command from 2006 to 2009, and as commander of the U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe from 2009 to 2013, recounted how gay soldiers have served in militaries for centuries. 'I'm Greek American. Arguably the greatest general in history, Alexander the Great, was gay,' Stavridis said. 'And oh, by the way, [gay] people serve at the highest level of the U.S. Cabinet today, like secretary of the treasury, who I think is doing a pretty good job with a tough hand of cards. [Scott] Bessent is openly gay.' 'So I don't get it on why we need to rename this ship, this moment, and also to do it during Pride Month,' he added. 'Just as kind of a shot across the bow. … I don't agree with it.' Someone else who doesn't agree with this is former longtime House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who tore into Hegseth over the move. 'The reported decision by the Trump Administration to change the names of the USNS Harvey Milk and other ships in the John Lewis-class is a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream,' Pelosi said in a statement. 'Our military is the most powerful in the world — but this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the 'warrior' ethos,' she said. Gay, lesbian and bisexual people have been openly serving in the U.S. military since 2011, when President Barack Obama signed a bill into law repealing the military's 'don't ask, don't tell' policy. President Joe Biden lifted a ban on transgender people openly serving in the military in 2021, but President Donald Trump reinstated the ban this year.
