'Outraged' Fox News host Laura Ingraham wants to defund the Pentagon over Gen. Milley's race studies defense

Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, defended the U.S. Military Academy's curriculum from criticism by Republicans at a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Wednesday. Milley specifically waved off complaints about an elective class at West Point that teaches critical race theory and explored "white rage," but he more generally stood up for the importance of academic study of differing views and difficult subjects important to understanding America, like race.
"I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our commissioned, non-commissioned officers of being 'woke' or something else because we're studying some theories that are out there," Milley said, in response to comments from Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Mike Waltz (R-Fla.). The "wokeness" of the military has also been a talking point on Fox News, by Tucker Carlson and others, and host Laura Ingraham slapped back at Milley on her show Wednesday night.
"We are sending our tax dollars to this military in an attempt to week out so-called 'extremists,'" Ingraham said, saying these "extremists" are just "conservative evangelicals" and not, as the Pentagon contends, white nationalist militants. "Why is Congress not saying we're not going to give you a penny until all this is eradicated from the military budget? Nothing. 'This is my offer to you: nothing," she said, quoting Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part II." That's what I would say," she said. Ingraham accused Milley of spreading a "far-left Marxist racist ideology" in the military, adding, "I am totally outraged by him and his ridiculous response today."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Gaetz also criticized Milley and the U.S. military after the hearing, writing: "With generals like this it's no wonder we've fought considerably more wars than we've won." People in the replies noted Gaetz's legal troubles and, more on topic, his lack of any military experience.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
A tall ship adventure in the Mediterranean
The Week Recommends Sailing aboard this schooner and exploring Portugal, Spain and Monaco is a 'magical' experience
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
The tourist flood in the Mediterranean: can it be stemmed?
Talking Point Finger-pointing at Airbnb or hotel owners obscures the root cause of overtourism in holiday hotspots: unmanageable demand
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible
-
Supreme Court lets states ax Planned Parenthood funds
Speed Read The court ruled that Planned Parenthood cannot sue South Carolina over the state's effort to deny it funding
-
Trump plans Iran talks, insists nuke threat gone
Speed Read 'The war is done' and 'we destroyed the nuclear,' said President Trump
-
Trump embraces NATO after budget vow, charm offensive
Speed Read The president reversed course on his longstanding skepticism of the trans-Atlantic military alliance
-
Trump judge pick told DOJ to defy courts, lawyer says
Speed Read Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated by Trump for a lifetime seat, stands accused of encouraging government lawyers to mislead the courts and defy judicial orders
-
Mamdani upsets Cuomo in NYC mayoral primary
Speed Read Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani beat out Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary
-
Supreme Court clears third-country deportations
Speed Read The court allowed Trump to temporarily resume deporting migrants to countries they aren't from