Politics
Hagel addresses LGBT service members at Pride event
Becomes first sitting defense secretary to speak at a Pentagon Pride
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel speaks at a DOD Pride event (Washington Blade photo by Damien Salas)
For the first time, a sitting defense secretary on Tuesday made a live appearance at a Pentagon event to observe June as Pride month and to thank LGBT troops for their service to the country.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel led a trio of high-ranking Obama administration officials at the event, giving opening remarks in which he called gay and lesbian service members and LGBT civilian workers “integral to America’s armed forces.”
“Our nation has always benefitted from the service of gay and lesbian soldiers, sailors, airmen, coast guardsmen and Marines,” Hagel said. “Now, they can serve openly with full honor, integrity and respect. This makes our military and our nation stronger — much stronger.”
Alluding to the now lifted policy of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Hagel emphasized America is a nation that has the capability to evolve.
“For more than two centuries, our democracy has shown that while it is imperfect, it can change, and it can change for the better,” Hagel said. “All of us should take pride in the role the U.S. military has played in this endeavor and continues to play. The military continues to fulfill this country’s promise. Our commitment to equality requires us to continue building a culture of respect for every member of the military, our society, and for all human beings.”
The event, which was organized by the LGBT affinity group DOD Pride, was the second-ever Pride celebration at the Pentagon and the first ever in which a sitting defense secretary participated. Last year, then-Defense Secretary Leon Panetta delivered remarks by video, but didn’t appear in person.
Hagel’s participation is also noteworthy because his nomination was controversial in the LGBT community. In 1998, Hagel reportedly called then-nominee for U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg Jim Hormel “openly aggressively gay.” Hagel apologized when these remarks resurfaced during his confirmation process and Hormel eventually endorsed the nomination.
At the event, Hagel received a warm welcome from the audience. Attendees, who mostly filled the 350-seat Pentagon auditorium, gave resounding applause when he approached the podium before his remarks.
Senior adviser to the president Valerie Jarrett (Washington Blade photo by Damien Salas)
Representing the White House at the event was senior adviser to the president Valerie Jarrett, who during her keynote speech emphasized the significance of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal and President Obama’s leadership in the effort.
“As you know, change has been the defining theme of the Obama administration,” Jarrett said. “When I look back over the last four-and-a-half years since President Obama took office, nothing better exemplifies that kind of profound, meaningful and historic change than repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.'”
Recalling the start of the legislative process to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Jarrett said she heard stories of gay service members at the White House and relayed them in the Oval Office to President Obama, who assured her repeal would happen.
“He put his hand on my shoulder and he said that he was determined, no matter what, that we would find a path to the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ so that the next time these men and women came to the White House, they could do so in uniform, proudly and openly, with their heads held high and their loved ones at their side,” Jarrett said.
Jarrett also touted the announcement in February that the Pentagon would start the process for providing partner benefits to gay troops available under current law. She said the military would be able to issue these benefits “this fall.”
Additionally, Jarrett also spoke at length about efforts to stop sexual assault in the military and alluded to future plans to enhance the health of the military.
Acting Air Force Secretary Eric Fanning, the highest-ranking openly gay civilian official within the Pentagon, was third to deliver remarks and spoke about his personal experience working at the Pentagon 20 years ago as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was implemented and the path toward its repeal.
“It was hard to imagine we’d ever be where we are today, but during these 20 years, the military’s gone through the difficult process of opening itself up by providing opportunities to those for whom it was previously denied or constrained, to women, to immigrants looking to prove their loyalty to this country and earn their citizenship, to gays and lesbians,” Fanning said.
Acting Air Force Secretary Eric Fanning (Washington Blade photo by Damien Salas)
Fanning, who said he was in the same room with Obama as he signed the certification for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal, also recalled the feeling of it being a non-event within the Pentagon.
“I kept getting asked, ‘What was it like when you went back to the building after the repeal was signed? Was that what everyone was talking about? Was there a buzz in the building?'” Fanning said. “And I answered honestly — and I think disappointingly — that, no, went back to the building, and in my view, the building had already moved on past the decision and we talked about what we talk about every single day: the budget.”
In accordance with military tradition, a quintet of service members presented the colors at the start of the event by bearing the Americans flag as well as flags for each of the military services. One service member, Marine Corps Cpl. Joey Gutierrez-Alvarez, sung the national anthem.
While each of the speakers talked generally about making more progress in the country for greater equality, they didn’t explicitly address two outstanding items LGBT advocates have sought for the U.S. military: the implementation of a non-discrimination policy and openly transgender service.
Allyson Robinson, outgoing executive director of OutServe-SLDN, nonetheless told the Blade in the auditorium after the event she was encouraged by what she heard on stage.
“I think it was historic,” Robinson said. “I was especially moved, though, by the acknowledgment … that there is so much work left to be done. Absent from much of this discussion is the need to include transgender people who are willing and qualified to serve to be a part of armed forces. We’re looking forward to completing that work as well.”
In his remarks, Hagel made the effort to exclude transgender service members — referring to “gay and lesbian service members and LGBT civilians” — even though he was addressing at least one transgender veteran in the audience. Robinson herself served in the Army before she transitioned.
The event took place the day after Robinson announced that she would leave OutServe-SLDN following a tumultuous two days of media reporting that she was ousted by the group’s board. At the event, Robinson declined to elaborate on why she was leaving.
Army Capt. Valerie Palacios, a member of the interim board with DOD Pride, told the Blade after the event the mere presence of the secretary of defense was significant.
“First of all, this is somebody so high, like the secretary of defense, and a senior adviser to the president at an event like this,” Palacios said. “As service members, we had a similar event last year, but it wasn’t quite as big … So this year is very important to us, especially because Secretary Hagel is very supportive of our community.”
Also in attendance at the event was Army Brig. Gen. Tammy Smith, the first openly gay flag officer in the U.S. military and deputy chief in the Army Reserve Office of the Chief in D.C.. After the event, she spoke highly of the speakers’ remarks.
“They were inclusive, they were about diversity, but they also focused on the military, the total force, and about the importance of the military and where it plays in the strategic security of our nation,” Smith said. So, we are a piece of that, we are not a whole of that, we are not a whole of that, and we recognize that as part of that diversity, we’ll make the military better.”
The White House
White House counterterrorism strategy targets ‘anti-American, radically pro-transgender’ groups
Administration released document last week
The White House released the “United States Counterterrorism Strategy” last week, introducing enforcement priorities that include references to people with “extreme transgender ideologies.”
The document is the first executive branch counterterrorism strategy released since former President Joe Biden’s 2021 “National Strategy for Countering Domestic Terrorism,” which largely focused on threats tied to domestic extremism and the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. The Trump-Vance administration’s new strategy instead centers heavily on cartels, Islamist organizations, and what it describes as “violent left-wing extremists.”
The report identifies three primary categories of terror threats facing the U.S.: “Narcoterrorists and Transnational Gangs,” “Legacy Islamist Terrorists,” and “Violent Left-Wing Extremists, including Anarchists and Anti-Fascists.” The strategy repeatedly frames those groups as existential threats to the U.S. and outlines a more aggressive, militarized counterterrorism posture.
The introduction to the report closes with a warning from President Donald Trump referencing counterterrorism operations carried out during his second administration: “We will find you and we will kill you.”
In the section outlining the administration’s counterterrorism priorities, the document argues that federal intelligence, and law enforcement agencies under prior administrations focused on the wrong threats while overlooking violence committed by left-wing extremists. The strategy specifically references transgender ideology while discussing political violence.
“As real threats were ignored or underplayed, Americans have witnessed the politically motivated killings of Christians and conservatives committed by violent left-wing extremists, including the assassination of Charlie Kirk by a radical who espoused extreme transgender ideologies.”
Claims tying a trans person to Kirk’s killing have been disputed, however, and multiple news outlets later retracted or corrected early reports that identified the shooter as trans.
The report later expands on that argument, saying the administration will prioritize targeting “violent secular political groups” it describes as anti-American and “radically pro-transgender.”
“In addition to cartels and Islamist terror groups, our national CT activities will also prioritize the rapid identification and neutralization of violent secular political groups whose ideology is anti-American, radically pro-transgender, and anarchist.”
The rhetoric mirrors claims frequently made by Trump allies and conservative commentators linking trans people and left-wing activism to political violence. However, data compiled by researchers and organizations tracking mass shootings does not support the idea that trans people are responsible for a significant share of such attacks.
Factcheck.org says rhetoric from Trump and several far-right political pundits contradicts available data, noting that the percentage of mass shootings committed by trans people is “exceedingly small.”
Despite the lack of evidence supporting generalized claims about trans people, the president’s son Donald Trump, Jr., told Fox News in September 2025 that he could not “name a mass shooting in the last year or two in America that wasn’t committed by, you know, a transgender lunatic.”
Factcheck.org also found that even if cases involving shooters with unclear gender identities were included in statistics about trans mass shooters, the number would still account for only a fraction of a percent.
Mark Bryant, founding executive director of the Gun Violence Archive, said the number of trans mass shooters could be as high as eight, but would still account for less than 0.1 percent of mass shootings over the last 12 years, according to GVA data. He added that the figure would remain below 0.2 percent even when examining incidents from 2018 to the present.
Beyond domestic extremism, the strategy frames the administration’s broader counterterrorism agenda through the lens of “America First” foreign policy and renewed U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere. The report repeatedly references the Monroe Doctrine, the nearly 200-year-old policy warning European powers against interference in the Americas.
“After years of neglect, the United States will reassert and enforce the Monroe Doctrine to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere, and to protect our homeland” Trump said in the report.
The document also breaks down counterterrorism priorities by region, including the Middle East, where it argues the U.S. is “no longer as dependent” on the region because of increased domestic energy production.
“Our growing domestic energy production means the Middle East is no longer as central to America’s stability, yet threats from this region remain, and our counterterrorism goals continue to be specific and rooted in realistic threat analysis.”
The statement comes amid rising gas prices tied in part to instability surrounding the war involving Iran, with fuel costs reaching some of their highest levels since 2022. According to AAA, the national average price for gasoline climbed to $4.52 per gallon as the national average rose “$.25 for a second straight week.“
Congress
Bill seeks to block global gag rule expansion
Policy now bans US foreign aid to groups promoting ‘gender ideology’
Lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a bill that would block the expansion of the global gag rule.
President Ronald Reagan in 1985 implemented the global gag rule, also known as the “Mexico City” policy, which bans U.S. foreign aid for groups that support abortion and/or offer abortion-related services.
Trump reinstated the rule during his first administration. The Biden-Harris administration shortly after it took office in 2021 rescinded it.
The Trump-Vance administration earlier this year expanded the global gag rule to ban U.S. foreign aid for groups that promote “gender ideology.” The expansion took effect on Feb. 26.
U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) introduced the Protecting Human Rights and Public Health in Foreign Assistance Act in the U.S. Senate. U.S. Reps. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), and Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) introduced it in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Using taxpayer money to export the Trump administration’s anti-trans, anti-science, and anti-abortion ideological agenda isn’t just immoral — it’s antithetical to efficient, effective, and rights-based foreign assistance,” said Council for Global Equality Senior Policy Fellow Beirne Roose-Snyder on Wednesday in a press release.
Meng added the Trump-Vance administration’s “crusade against healthcare and global aid is putting millions of lives at risk worldwide.”
“No one will flourish under the new expanded global gag rule,” said the New York Democrat. “These policies weaponize foreign aid and will result in greater harm, particularly for women and girls, marginalized communities, and LGBTQI+ individuals.”
“They should never have been implemented at all, let alone without even a basic public comment process,” she added. “This legislation will reverse these dangerous policies.”
The White House
From red carpet to chaos: A first-person narrative of the WHCD shooting
The Blade’s WH correspondent Joe Reberkenny recounts his night at the WHCD after a shooter attempted to gain entry.
It started as any White House Correspondents’ Dinner is supposed to go—I assume. I’ve never been to one before this, but based on other events I’ve attended at the Hilton, including an HRC gala, it all seemed fairly normal.
There was a lot of traffic. Police had blocked off streets encompassing a large portion of Adams Morgan—particularly around the hotel. The president was making his first appearance after boycotting the event during his first term, so there was a sense of anticipation. It took me about 45 minutes to go just under a mile from my apartment to about three blocks from the hotel in my Uber. I waited until the last possible second before I felt like I was going to be late—6:30—to get out of the car, because it was raining and I was wearing my green tux.
I walked up to a group of people checking tickets at the base of the hotel. They seemed to just be glancing at the tiny, index-card-sized tickets rather than conducting any kind of full security screening outside. As I walked from that first checkpoint to the drive-around drop-off area, I joined what was essentially one long line for the red carpet. It eventually split into people who wanted photos and those who didn’t—but again, there was no real need to show anything beyond that small ticket upon entering, and even that wasn’t being checked closely.
A light went off in my head; I felt that, given the speed at which security was checking tickets, they couldn’t fully see the foil logo and tiny table numbers from that distance. I remember thinking that if I had a similarly sized piece of paper, I could have gotten through up to that point.
I also noticed there was no real security checkpoint or metal detectors upon initially entering the hotel grounds—unlike what I had seen at the HRC gala the year before.
I waited about 35 minutes in line in the car drop-off area—without cars, since it had been repurposed to corral press and their guests before entering the building and heading onto the red carpet. I took my photo, then went up the escalator to meet my date, Jacob Bernard from Democracy Forward. They wouldn’t let him onto the red carpet without his ticket, so I gave him his, which I had been holding. He was already inside the venue despite not having his ticket on him and had been at one of the pre-parties.
That also struck me as odd—that you could access a pre-dinner party without a ticket or going through any visible security.
After I found him, we took a photo together at a step-and-repeat past the main red carpet area around 7:45. Oddly enough, a group of my friends—gays who I regularly see on the dance floors of the gay bars of Washington, who work in various government and media-adjacent fields—found me, and we took pictures together. None were White House correspondents or held a “hard pass” to the White House (security credentials that allow entry into the White House complex).
Another light went off in my head that indicated party crashers probably shouldn’t be getting inside to an event that is supposed to be one of the most secure rooms in the country.
After the photos, I could see groups of people being moved from pre-party spaces in various meeting rooms on other floors and directed toward the main floor where the red carpet had been.
My guest and I went back up to the main floor and walked through a small security checkpoint that included only a handful of metal detectors. From there, I went down the stairs from the lobby into the International Ballroom, where we took our seats at Table 200. I talked to a few people I knew—very traditional pre-event chit-chat. The vibes felt good. It was my first time attending, and I was genuinely excited.
Around 8:15, the Marine Corps Band played and “Commandant’s Four” color guard presented the flags. We were then told to take our seats.
They introduced the head table—the president, first lady, vice president, and members of the White House Correspondents’ Association board. Weijia Jiang, senior White House correspondent for CBS News and president of the WHCA, gave a brief speech, essentially saying we would eat first and then move into the main program, which was supposed to feature mentalist Oz Pearlman.
At this point my table, 200 which included members of the Wall Street Journal, the Blade, and a European outlet all started eating. About 15 minutes later, Washington Hilton staff began clearing plates and preparing to bring out the next course.
As they cleared the plates, I heard four loud bangs.
I saw hotel employees immediately start ducking. They seemed to understand the gravity of the situation much faster than most attendees, including myself. At first, it sounded like a tray might have fallen over (but I later found out that wasn’t the case).
After about 30 seconds of watching some people duck, others look around in confusion, and some continue eating and drinking, I got down. I kneeled with my chair in front of me as a kind of barrier. Being at Table 200, I felt somewhat removed from where the actual incident occurred.
Then I saw the president being whisked away quickly by Secret Service, along with the first lady and others at the head table.
My reporter instincts kicked in. I grabbed my phone and started filming. I saw SWAT team members rush into the ballroom and onto the stage, clearing the area. I captured a video of people looking around, confused about what had just happened.
A few minutes later, the room was told by the WHCA president to hold on—that they would provide more information and guidance on what would happen next. There was some indication that they might try to continue the event despite what had occurred.
Everyone started frantically checking X to see if any major outlets were reporting. I was receiving texts from family, friends, and colleagues about the rapidly unfolding situation.
I walked to the bathroom—twice, technically. I couldn’t find it initially because it was hidden behind black curtains. (Later, those curtains were removed, and the men’s room was in clearer view.)
During the first walk to the bathroom, I called my editor to tell him what was happening. He instructed me to start sending copy to another editor, who would get it online. The ballroom had almost no service—it’s in the basement of a 12-story hotel—so it was a challenge. I utilized SMS fallback (since iMessage wasn’t working) to send updates.
I returned to the table, where people were still hovering—calling editors, scrolling, texting, sending photos and copy. I was already drafting my story and sending it in chunks, adding details as I gathered more information.
I walked my guest toward the bathroom again, which was on the opposite side of the ballroom from our table, so I had to cross what felt like a sea of journalists, PR officials, guests, and others on their phones, talking and scrolling. My guest pointed out that the press pool was being held in an alcove away from the ballroom doors and escalator exit—not in the ballroom with everyone else.
“Alive” by the Bee Gees was playing over the speakers in the bathroom, which felt a little too on the nose.
On my way out, I heard someone speaking over a microphone and rushed to the ballroom entrance. WHCA President Weijia Jiang was speaking. She announced that the event was over and the space was being evacuated.
She also said that President Trump would hold a press conference at the White House in about 25 minutes.
That’s when I knew it was a race against the clock.
I called my editor a second time to update him and asked if I should head to the briefing (knowing the answer would be yes). He confirmed.
Then the crowd began to move. People grabbed purses, bottles—some left belongings behind. Even though it was technically becoming a crime scene, no one was actively forcing us out. It felt more like a collective understanding: It was time to go.
I texted my guest: “OK, I have to go to the White House. I’m so sorry to leave you.”
I made my way with the sea of people toward the one exit we were allowed to use and zipped between women in fancy gowns and men looking like penguins.
I put on my hard press pass, opened the Capital Bikeshare app, reserved the closest e-bike, and headed out.
I walked up Columbia Road to 20th and Wyoming, grabbed the bike, and rode down Wyoming, then 18th, cut over to U Street, and went straight down 16th to the White House. That ride was exhilarating. I also filmed an Instagram Reel updating my followers on what was going on. I could see tourists and D.C. residents alike looking at me from their cars and the sidewalk, obviously confused as to why a man dressed in a tux had hopped on a bike.
I got off the bike where 16th Street meets Lafayette Square and darted toward the first White House security checkpoint, where they were verifying press credentials. Luckily, I had mine. After that, it turned into a mad dash. Everyone who made it through started moving quickly.
The sound of heels on what I think was cobblestone—or maybe brick—sticks with me. My own shoes were clacking as I ran toward the White House alongside other journalists in heels and dress shoes.
At the Secret Service checkpoint, there was a separate line for hard pass holders. Having my hard pass let me skip much of the impeccably dressed line of journalists who didn’t think to bring their hard pass with them.
It was probably the most exquisitely dressed press crowd I’ve ever seen—tuxedos, gowns, full makeup. It felt like something out of “The Hunger Games.”
I went through security, put my belongings through the metal detector, entered my code, grabbed my things, and ran to the briefing room.
Honey, have we been priced out of gay paradise?
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