Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Navy Secretary John Phelan are at the center of a stormy political clash that has Washington, D.C. on edge. Their decision about a U.S. Navy ship’s name has ignited fierce debate across the country.
According to Breitbart News, Hegseth has instructed the Navy to remove the name of slain gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk from the oiler USNS Harvey Milk. The move comes as top defense officials say they are aligning with President Donald Trump’s priorities and seeking to “reestablish the warrior culture” in the armed forces.
The order, confirmed by multiple sources and reported by outlets such as Military.com and ABC News, came with a memo detailing the rationale for the controversial change. The timing, coinciding with Pride Month, has only fueled the controversy, with critics and supporters trading accusations and praise in equal measure.
Supporters of Hegseth’s order argue that the Navy should stick to honoring military figures and traditions, not activists. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the change is about reflecting the Commander-in-Chief’s priorities and the country’s “history.” Hegseth’s backers claim that renaming the ship fits with “reestablishing the warrior culture,” a phrase that appears in the Navy’s internal memorandum on the issue.
Critics, however, see the move as a calculated insult to LGBTQ Americans and to Milk’s legacy. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi called the decision “spiteful,” arguing it weakens the armed forces: “Our military is the most powerful in the world – but this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the ‘warrior’ ethos,” Pelosi wrote on X. She continued, “It is a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.”
Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) joined Pelosi, questioning the practical impact on defense. “How, exactly, does this make our warfighters any safer?” Coons posted on X, highlighting the skepticism among many Democrats about the rationale for the decision.
The USNS Harvey Milk was named in 2016 by then-Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and formally christened in November 2021. Milk, a Navy veteran, became California’s first openly gay elected official in 1978 and was assassinated less than a year into office. The Department of Veterans Affairs describes Milk as embodying “the values of honor, courage and commitment as he fought to expand gay rights.”
Yet, conservative commentators and some activists have seized the spotlight to attack Milk’s legacy. Mary Rice Hasson of the Ethics and Public Policy Center did not mince words: “Harvey Milk was a pedophile. This is the right thing to do.”
Joy Pullmann, an editor at the Federalist, echoed those sentiments in a post on X, alleging Milk “had sex with underage boys” and insisting, “He doesn’t deserve any honors anywhere, ever.” These accusations have intensified the debate, drawing sharp lines between those who see Milk as a civil rights hero and others who believe his name has no place on a military vessel.
Hegseth’s directive arrived after discussions with Navy Secretary John Phelan and with President Trump’s views in mind. According to the memorandum cited by Breitbart News, the ship’s renaming is intended to bring “alignment with president and SECDEF objectives and SECNAV priorities of reestablishing the warrior culture.” The decision follows a broader trend by the Trump administration to revisit military honors and names across the Department of Defense.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell made clear the administration’s priorities: “Hegseth was ‘committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief’s priorities’ and the country’s ‘history.’” This statement underscores a deliberate effort to shape the military’s future identity in line with the Trump administration’s values.
While some see these changes as necessary corrections, others view them as erasures of hard-won progress for minorities and marginalized groups. The debate is now playing out in real time, with activists, veterans, politicians, and commentators all weighing in.
The fallout from Hegseth’s order has been swift and divisive. Democrats and LGBTQ advocates have condemned the move as a step backward for inclusion and diversity in the armed forces. Meanwhile, conservative voices are celebrating what they see as a return to military tradition and discipline.
The controversy has also reignited past debates about how the military should honor individuals and the criteria for such recognition. The case of Harvey Milk has become a flashpoint for larger cultural battles playing out across the country during Pride Month.
As the Navy prepares to implement the renaming order, questions remain about what name will replace Harvey Milk on the oiler and how service members will respond to the change. For now, both sides appear entrenched, with little sign of compromise.
