She cited interviews he provided and quotes in his book ... your words from 10 weeks ago: ‘Women absolutely straight up should not be permitted to serve in combat…. Help me understand, Mr ...

In January 2013, then-Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta authorized lifting a 1994 ban on women serving in direct ground combat roles. Beginning in January 2016, all military jobs opened to women ...

Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, mandated that physical fitness requirements for combat jobs be “sex-neutral,” a move that is likely to significantly reduce the number of women who qualify.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a memo Monday ordering men and women to meet the same physical fitness requirements if they want to serve in combat roles, saying the Pentagon had “allowed ...