Yeah... when Trump says someone is doing great -- it usually is the kiss of death and the official is gone within a month. At this point we should be starting a pool on how many days Whiskey Pete has left.
KENNY CODY: Pete Hegseth's accomplishments in first 100 days are historically transformative Under the Biden Administration, military recruitment was at an all-time low, and our warfighters were not being treated fairly by any metric besides the harmful DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives that were appealing to only the far-left members of our nation. Luckily, Hegseth and company have changed that with the Restore America's Fighting Force" Task Force to abolish DEI jobs, prioritize merit-based policies, and bring back the military to embrace its history of warfighters protecting American cultural values. By returning Fort Bragg and Fort Benning to their original names and creating narratives around our American military that embrace its incredible record, the Department of Defense is making its people proud again while increasing its appeal to the masses.
It's the only thing I will give credit, the only credit, to Pete Hegseth in that he's doing something to attract more recruits to the U.S. military that other prior administrations and congress did not want to see happen...give military recruits a lot of money off the taxpayers back. Offering lots of money to join the U.S. Armed Forces including other incentives.The problem is that many of the specialty MOS jobs in the military...you can make 3x as much in the civilian world doing the same job. The military & congress have always been reluctant to may military pay with bonuses and incentives equal to civilian pay...the American taxpayer financing it all. The US military offers various enlistment bonuses to attract and retain personnel, with amounts ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands of dollars. These bonuses are tied to specific military occupational specialties (MOS), length of commitment, and other factors, potentially reaching a maximum of $50,000 for certain roles in some branches. Imagine you're out of high school or a college graduate and you're told that if you join...you may qualify for $50,000 dollars plus paying off your college education debts, station locations of your choice in specific MOS, housing bonuses for those married or plan to get married, free food on base at the upgraded cafeterias, free access to upgraded fitness centers, easy approvals to loans for automobiles, and possible payments for continuing your college education to a nearby University at your military base of station... If the University is too far, they'll pay for part or all of you apartment rent near campus as long as you get good grades (passing) in your classes. Today's outrageous cost of higher education in the United States plus a chance to travel at the expense of the American taxpayer...it's a great deal for recruits. The key is the U.S. government has been increasing the budget of the U.S. Armed Forces and offering recruits more money, bonuses, and incentives to join is a big part of that recruiting picture here in 2025. Most of the increase in recruits have been from the South and Southwest. Also, they're offering prior service members a lot of money to return back to the military. A good friend of mine son exited the Army as a 2nd Lieutenant and he was working for a private company in AI. The Army reached out to him and offered him a promotion to Captain, free housing bonus off base for his family and him, and $90,000 plus a great location so that his wife can go to graduate school at the nearby university...the U.S. taxpayer will pay for all of this. I told him to get them to throw in letting him go to Airborne school and then Ranger school...more bonuses. Him and his family will be set for life assuming there's not future war that he would be killed. Active Duty: The Army offers bonuses of up to $50,000 for certain enlisted jobs, while the Navy can offer up to $140,000 for active duty enlistees.The Air Force also offers bonuses up to $40,000. Reserves and National Guard: The Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard offer bonuses as well, with the ANG potentially offering up to $75,000 for new recruits and up to $90,000 for prior-service members. Bonus Types: Besides enlistment bonuses, the military offers other incentives, such as quick ship bonuses (for reporting to boot camp quickly), civilian acquired skills bonuses, and bonuses for certain special forces units like Rangers or Airborne troops. Factors Influencing Bonuses: The amount of the bonus depends on factors like the specific job specialty, length of enlistment commitment, civilian experience, and whether the recruit has college credits and graduate. The bonuses I received to join right out of college is tiny involving a "critical MOS bonus" in comparison to what's being offered today to recruits. Yet, I do have a lifetime of free healthcare in the United States through the VA. https://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/military-bonuses-information.html https://www.goarmy.com/benefits/while-you-serve/bonuses With all that said, Pete Hegseth has been undermining the U.S. military with his other actions. He's hurting our Military Officer recruits that's briefly mentioned in the Youtube video you posted @ https://www.elitetrader.com/et/threads/bye-bye-whiskey-pete.384196/page-4#post-6127030 Yet, I think Pete Hegseth will have a scandal from the pressures & stress of the job in leading the United States Secretary of Defense. He'll then be asked to resign or be fired. wrbtrader
Hegseth is drastically cutting the tops ranks of the military. Translation: He will only keep generals who are loyal to Trump. This has nothing to do with saving money or improving the military. US Defense Secretary Hegseth to slash senior-most ranks of military https://www.reuters.com/world/us/pentagon-reduce-4-star-positions-by-20-official-says-2025-05-05/