Retired Army Gen. Mark Milley, the former chair of the joint chiefs of staff, is defending the role of women in combat — clashing with the views of Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Pentagon.
Milley, who served as the top U.S. military officer under Trump and President Joe Biden until his retirement in 2023, said at an event Wednesday that women have served in battle throughout history.
And he pointedly recalled the service of an Army nurse who braved minefields to save fellow service members and was killed in action.
“Don’t lecture me about women in combat,” Milley said at a national security innovation event hosted by the Pallas Foundation. “Women have been in combat, and it doesn’t matter if that 7.62 [caliber round] hits you in the chest. No one gives a shit if it’s a woman or a guy to pull that trigger, you’re still dead.”
His remarks come after Pete Hegseth, an Army National Guard veteran and Fox TV host nominated by Trump to be defense secretary, faced public criticism for saying women should not serve in combat.
Milley was elevated to the U.S. military’s top job by Trump in 2019 but has since been sharply critical of him. He described the now president-elect as “fascist to the core” in a book by journalist Bob Woodward.
Trump and Hegseth have been sharply critical of the military and what they call “woke generals.” Milley, who did not specifically mention the nominee during the event, made it clear to the audience that he views the military as a meritocracy.
“If you meet the standards, our military must be, and always should be, a standards-based, merit-based military period, full stop,” he said.
Women have been allowed to serve in frontline combat roles since 2015, when then-U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter ordered the U.S. military to open all jobs to women. Hegseth, who said the inclusion of women in combat units has “made fighting more complicated,” has argued that women can still serve, just not in jobs such as armor, artillery, infantry or in the special operations community.
Milley’s remarks come after the U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters traveling with him in Laos earlier Wednesday that the military should not take women out of frontline combat roles.
“I think our women add significant value to the United States military and we should never change that,” Austin said, adding that his message to women in uniform was that “ we need you, we have faith in you, we are appreciative of your service, and you add value to the finest and most lethal fighting force on Earth.”
Milley was also pressed on whether the U.S. would continue to be a reliable international partner under Trump. Trump has often questioned the value of longstanding alliances such as NATO. Milley predicted a “retraction” in U.S. military engagement abroad over the long term, but stopped short of saying the U.S. is drifting to isolationism.
“I wouldn’t say we’re going to be isolationists,” Milley said. “I wouldn’t go that far, but there’s a probability that there’ll be some sort of retraction over time — this isn’t going to be instant — over time, of US military forces overseas.”
Milley sidestepped questions about whether reports the incoming administration could create a “warrior board” of retired military officers to review sitting generals and admirals or attempt to court martial officers would have a chilling effect on the force or recruitment.
“I would imagine right now that there’s probably some eyebrows being raised in the Pentagon or out in units. I don’t think they’re obsessed with it, to tell you the truth, because they don’t know what it means,” Milley said. “They don’t know what it consists of. No one has actually laid any of this stuff out.”