US defence secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly used an anti-trans slur during a military fundraiser at the Iowa State Fair, as he promoted the Trump administration’s campaign against diversity and transgender inclusion in the armed forces.
Hegseth appeared alongside Republican Congressman Zach Nunn at JR’s SouthPork Ranch on Monday, 17 August, for Operation Top Nunn: Salute To The Troops, an annual fundraiser and veterans event.
During his speech, Hegseth referred to the Pentagon by the Trump administration’s preferred secondary title, the “Department of War”, before making the anti-trans remark.
“At the Department of War, we do training, not t*******,” he said.
The slur has been censored.
The Pentagon did not immediately comment on the reported remarks.
Hegseth Promotes ‘Department Of War’ Agenda
Hegseth used his appearance to outline what he described as the department’s renewed focus on military preparedness and merit.
“Training, lethality, accountability, discipline, readiness – the bedrock of what it means to be an American warrior – is the only focus of our department. Colourblind, gender-neutral, merit-based. That’s it,” he said.
His comments continued the Trump administration’s use of “Department of War” as a public-facing name for the Pentagon.
Trump authorised the title’s use in September 2025, although the department’s legal name remains the Department of Defense unless Congress formally changes it.
The branding has become part of the administration’s wider effort to present the US military as more aggressive while dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Hegseth has repeatedly framed those initiatives as distractions from combat readiness, despite diversity and inclusion being compatible with maintaining professional military standards.
Remarks Come Amid Crackdown On Trans Service Members
The slur carries particular weight because Hegseth oversees a department that has introduced sweeping restrictions affecting transgender military personnel.
Under the Trump administration, the Pentagon has stopped accepting new transgender recruits, restricted transition-related healthcare and pursued the separation of openly trans people already serving.
Those policies have faced ongoing legal challenges from transgender service members and civil-rights organisations.
For trans personnel, Hegseth’s language cannot easily be separated from those decisions.
The country’s defence secretary was not simply making an offensive joke as a private citizen. He was speaking as the senior official responsible for the careers, healthcare and future service of transgender people across the US military.
Describing the armed forces as “gender-neutral” and “merit-based” while using a slur against trans people also creates a clear contradiction.
Being transgender does not determine a person’s discipline, competence, fitness or ability to serve. Policies targeting an entire group on the basis of gender identity are therefore difficult to reconcile with claims that individual merit is the department’s only concern.
Fundraiser Was Postponed Following Soldiers’ Deaths
The annual fundraiser had originally been scheduled for March but was postponed after two Iowa soldiers, Major Jeffrey O’Brien and Sergeant Declan J Coady, were killed in an Iranian strike on a facility in Kuwait.
It was later rescheduled as part of the Iowa State Fair.
Nunn, an Iowa Republican seeking another term in Congress, appeared alongside Hegseth and read the names of the soldiers during the event.
The fundraiser combined tributes to military personnel with political messaging from Hegseth about the Trump administration’s direction for the Pentagon.
Hegseth Has A History Of Targeting Trans Inclusion
The Iowa remarks are consistent with Hegseth’s record of opposing transgender inclusion in the military.
The former Fox News host has made conservative culture-war politics a central part of his public profile, frequently attacking diversity initiatives and policies supporting LGBTQ+ service members.
His tenure at the Pentagon has included efforts to remove transgender personnel and restrict their access to healthcare, alongside broader moves targeting DEI programs.
Critics argue that this rhetoric encourages hostility towards trans service members while presenting discrimination as a matter of military readiness.
The use of a slur intensifies those concerns by reducing transgender people to a political punchline in front of an audience gathered to support the armed forces.
Why The Language Matters
Anti-trans slurs are not harmless shorthand.
They have long been used to demean, dehumanise and encourage hostility towards transgender people.
When that language comes from one of the most powerful officials in the US Government, it can also signal to others that treating trans people with contempt is acceptable.
That message is especially damaging for transgender people serving in the military, who are already facing uncertainty over whether they will be permitted to continue their careers.
Hegseth’s comments may have been delivered in Iowa, but rhetoric from high-profile American politicians regularly travels well beyond the United States.
For LGBTQ+ communities in Australia, the episode will feel familiar amid local debates in which transgender people are increasingly treated as ideological targets rather than members of the community deserving dignity, safety and equal treatment.
A senior government official using an anti-trans slur does nothing to improve military readiness.
It does, however, make the administration’s attitude towards transgender people unmistakably clear.
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