When Trump boasts about donating his presidential salary, be sure to read the fine print

Steve Benen
Wed, September 30, 2026 
 MS NOW.


US President Donald Trump gestures as he stands onstage after concluding his remarks during the second day of the Republican National Committee midterm convention at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas on September 10, 2026. US Republicans are betting that putting President Donald Trump at the center of their campaign can rescue a party facing grim election forecasts, despite the president's negative approval ratings. A day earlier, on the first day of the midterm convention, he promised $5,000 to every American adult if Republicans retain control of Congress in November. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)More

At a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration Wednesday at the White House, President Donald Trump repeated a variety of familiar boasts, but he seemed especially interested in talking about how impressive it is that he doesn't accept his presidential salary.

"In my first term, I donated it and I don't think I ever got a story about it," Trump whined, adding, "But in my second term, I donated it, too."

The comments came a day after Trump, while unveiling an artificial intelligence chatbot, similarly bragged, "I don't take my salary. They think that no other president has ever served without receiving their salary." (I'm not sure who "they" are, but Herbert Hoover and John F. Kennedy also donated their presidential salaries.)

Earlier this year in Georgia, the president pushed the same false line about American history, saying: "I'm the only schmuck. I get no credit for it. You know what, I get no credit for it. Nobody writes about it." (In reality, lots of news outlets have written about it.)

As best as I can tell, Trump really does waive his presidential salary, but before anyone rushes to give him credit for his magnanimity, this is one of those claims that comes with important fine print.

The base annual salary for an American president is $400,000, none of which the Republican incumbent accepts. But — and this is the important part — Trump doesn't need the $400,000 a year because he's already profiting off the presidency.

As a candidate for the nation's highest office, Trump vowed to reject "the politics of personal profit" and to stand up to those who have gone to the nation's capital and "lined their pockets." But as a president, Trump has practically sent his pants out to the tailors to get bigger pockets.

In the first year of his second term, the Republican pulled in at least $2.2 billion, including more than $1.4 billion in cryptocurrency-related income, according to his latest annual financial disclosure.

No other president in American history has ever seen such financial gains while in office, and as a recent analysis from The New York Times explained, "Mr. Trump's profits are a haul once unimaginable for any leader of a liberal democracy, particularly a sitting American president. No modern Western leader has ever publicly disclosed such big windfalls while in office. The Trump family's earnings, experts said, have moved him into an echelon of enrichment more associated with strongmen in Russia and Turkey."

In other words, the next time he brags about forgoing his $400,000 salary, remember that he took home more than five times that amount just last year.

This post updates our related earlier coverage.

THE BILLIONAIRE VS. THE DOCTOR

Vivek Ramaswamy dealt double polling blow against Amy Acton within 24 hours

Andrew Stanton
Tue, September 29, 2026 

NEWSWEEK

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy trailed Democrat Amy Acton in two new polls of the Ohio governor's race released Tuesday by Marist University and Suffolk University, a blow to the GOP candidate in the conservative-leaning state just five weeks before the midterm elections.

Democrats are hoping to stage a comeback in Ohio this year. The Buckeye State was once a battleground that backed former President Barack Obama in the 2008 and 2012 elections but has since shifted rightward, backing President Donald Trump three times, including a double-digit victory in 2024.

Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur who rose to national prominence during his 2024 presidential run, is running against Acton, who led the Ohio Department of Health during the COVID-19 pandemic. The race is expected to be one of the closest of the midterms, with forecasters like the Cook Political Report considering it a toss-up.

Amy Acton, left, attends a campaign event in Marietta, Ohio, on September 17, while Vivek Ramaswamy, right, speaks during a watch party on May 5 in Columbus, Ohio.

Acton led by 9 points, 50 percent to 41 percent, in the Suffolk poll. It is her strongest lead in any survey since February. Meanwhile, she held a 6-point lead in the Marist poll, 50 percent to 44 percent.

A third poll released later Tuesday by Big Data Poll showed Ramaswamy with a slight lead, 45.1 percent to 42.7 percent.

The closeness of the race is a "testament to the difficult environment Republicans face this year," Robert Alexander, professor of political science at Bowling Green State University, told Newsweek.

"Not only is their party in charge during a midterm election—which usually spells trouble for that party—but views on the economy have been especially negative over the past year," he said. "Most people think the state and the country are moving in the wrong direction and that the economy was better last year than it is now."

Still, Republicans could close the gap before Election Day, he said, adding that whether or not Republicans turn out to vote will make the difference.

"The state is more aligned with Republicans, but again, there is a lot of frustration and many independents also seem to have turned against Republicans in the polling thus far," Alexander also said.

The Suffolk poll surveyed 500 likely voters from September 23 to September 27, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points. The Marist poll surveyed 1,298 registered voters from September 24 to September 27, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. The Big Data Poll surveyed 735 registered voters, 680 of whom were likely voters, on September 26 and September 27.

Acton, Ramaswamy Campaigns React to New Polls

Ramaswamy spokesperson Evan Machan downplayed the polling in a statement to Newsweek.

"Every election year, the media does the exact same thing: they follow public polls, build their coverage around them, and treat them like gospel. And every election year, those polls are inevitably wrong. You would think at some point the media would learn the lesson, but every cycle they fall for it all over again," Machan said.

Acton's Campaign Manager Philip Stein told Newsweek that voters in Ohio are "ready to elect Acton because they know she's the only choice who has proven she'll show up anywhere and work with anyone to bring down costs, clean up corruption, and work towards an Ohio where everyone can thrive."

"While out-of-touch billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy and his billionaire buddies try to buy this election by spending tens of millions of dollars flooding the airwaves with misleading AI ads, Dr. Acton has remained laser-focused on running a grassroots campaign traveling to every corner of Ohio," Stein said.
Amy Acton's Lead Powered by Women, Independent Voters

The pair of polls found that independent voters and women are bolstering Acton's showing in the state.

Acton led by 25 points among independents, 57 percent to 32 percent, in the Marist poll. She also led by 12 points among women, 53 percent to 41 percent.

In the Suffolk poll, Acton led independents by 37 points, 64 percent to 27 percent. She led women by 19 points, 55 percent to 36 percent.

For comparison, Trump won both groups in the state in 2024. He won independents by 2 points, 50 percent to 48 percent, and women by a single point, 50 percent to 49 percent, according to CNN.

Despite Trump's strong showing in Ohio just two years ago, Democrats have targeted the state amid a more favorable national environment. Republicans are facing voter backlash over the ongoing state of the economy and the high cost of living. Soaring gas prices amid the Iran war have also added pressure to Americans' finances ahead of the midterms.

Historically, the party of the president suffers midterm losses when his approval rating is low, and Democrats believe Trump's approval rating reaching record lows could open the door to winning back voters in states like Ohio.
What Other Polls Show About Ohio Governor's Race

The Ohio governor's race is expected to be one of the closest of the midterms, and recent polling reflects that.

A poll from YouGov and Bowling Green State University released this month gave Acton a 3-point lead, 48 percent to 45 percent. It surveyed 1,000 likely voters from September 1 to September 10, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

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Ramaswamy, however, held a 2-point lead in a Fox News poll, 50 percent to 48 percent. It surveyed 1,008 registered voters from August 6 to August 10 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
What Prediction Markets Show

Prediction markets show a close race, with Acton having a 61 percent chance of victory on Kalshi, and carrying a 62 percent chance of victory on Polymarket as of Tuesday.

Prediction markets allow traders to buy and sell contracts tied to political outcomes and current events, aggregating real‑money wagers into probability estimates.

Prices fluctuate as traders react to polling, fundraising, candidate developments and broader political trends. They measure trader sentiment at a given moment but do not always accurately predict the future.
How Ohio Shifted From Purple to Red

Trump won Ohio by about 11 percentage points in 2024, an improvement on his 2020 and 2016 performances, when he won by about 8 points each time. But Ohio was viewed as more competitive for Democrats not long before. Obama narrowly carried Ohio in 2008 and 2012.

Alexander said the state has a "strong populist streak," and Democrats are working to appeal to those voters this year.

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"They are working to distinguish themselves from the national party, while trying to not alienate more progressive portions of the base. This is a difficult task," he said. "I think the bigger issue is that if Democrats aren't successful in this environment, it is hard to see how they can be successful in future elections in the state."

Trump made inroads with white, working-class voters who were previously more divided between Democrats and Republicans. His gains came from rural counties as well as the northeastern region near Cleveland. Democrats have gained some ground in Cincinnati and Columbus suburbs, but not enough to offset Republican gains in rural areas.

Still, Ohio has been competitive in some recent elections.

Democratic former Senator Sherrod Brown won reelection in 2018, then lost in 2024 by fewer than 4 percentage points. He is running for Senate against GOP incumbent Jon Husted this year, and polls point to a competitive race.
When Did Ohio Last Elect a Democratic Governor?

Ohio last elected a Democratic governor in 2006, when Ted Strickland, then a member of the House, flipped the seat as part of a blue wave. In 2010, a stronger year for the GOP, Republican John Kasich defeated Strickland by about 2 points.

Since then, Ohio has elected moderate Republican governors like Kasich in his reelection and Mike DeWine, who is ineligible to seek a third term in office.

Who Is Vivek Ramaswamy?

Ramaswamy ran for president in 2024 but was unable to overtake Trump in the primary. He was still able to become a favorite among many conservatives and gained national political attention while focusing his criticism on "woke" corporate culture.

Upon his return to the White House, Trump selected the entrepreneur-turned-politician to co-lead the Department of Government Efficiency, but Ramaswamy stepped away from the position in its early days before announcing his gubernatorial run.

Trump has endorsed Ramaswamy's campaign for governor.

Ramaswamy easily won the Republican primary with more than 80 percent of the vote.

Who Is Amy Acton?

Acton served under DeWine as director of the Ohio Department of Health from February 2019 through June 2020, working through the initial wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. She has also worked for nonprofits like the Columbus Foundation.

She has garnered attention—and criticism from some more progressive Democrats—for breaking from her party on key issues. She has said she does not "support boys playing in girls sports" and has said she supports Issue 3, an amendment that would put the state's voter ID requirements into its constitution.

"This amendment has overwhelming support from Ohioans across the state," Acton said, according to WEWS in Cleveland. "As this doesn't change what is already law, as governor, I will support it."

Acton ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.

What Happens Next

Ohio's gubernatorial race is expected to be one of the closest of the midterms. The two candidates are not expected to debate. Both the Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball classify the race as a toss-up.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Jason Lemon and Dave Siminoff.

Trump’s Approval Rating On The Economy Hits All-Time Low

Sara Dorn, Forbes Staff
 Wed, September 30, 2026 


Topline

President Donald Trump's approval rating on the economy and Iran slid to record lows in a new poll released this week, while a second poll found his approval rating during his second term dipped back to its record-low point of 42%.

President Donald Trump arrives at the White House in Washington, DC, in the early hours of September 23, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)
Timeline

Sept. 29Trump had a 34% approval rating and 61% disapproval rating in the latest Quinnipiac poll of 1,032 registered voters surveyed Sept. 24-27 (margin of error 3.8).

His 31% approval rating on the economy is an all-time low for both terms, and his 28% approval rating on his handling of the situation in Iran ties his all-time low reached in a July 29 Quinnipiac poll.

Sept. 29Trump's 42% approval rating in a Harvard CAPS/Harris poll matches his second-term low reached in April and July this year and is a two-point decline from the groups' last poll in August (the latest survey of 2,200 registered voters was conducted Sept. 26-28 and has a margin of error of 2.1).

Sept. 24Trump's 39% approval rating is a one-point decline from last month, and his disapproval rating has increased two points, to 58%, in the latest Emerson College poll of 1,000 likely voters taken Sept. 21-22 (margin of error 3).

Trump's approval rating initially hit a low of 39% in Emerson polling in May, then climbed to 40% in August.

The poll also found 53% of respondents said they would vote for the Democratic congressional candidate in their district in midterms, while 42% said they would vote for the Republican.

Sept. 23Trump's 33% approval rating is a new low point for either of his terms, according to CNN/SSRS polling, and is three points below what it was at this point during his first term in 2018, while 67% disapprove of his job performance, compared to 58% in September 2018 (the latest poll of 1,206 U.S. adults was taken Sept. 16-17 and has a margin of error 3.8).

Trump's approval rating on the economy is 22 points below what it was in September 2018, and Americans' view of the economy generally is 41 points worse.

Sept. 23Trump had a 39% approval rating and 53% disapproval rating in the latest PBS/NPR/Marist poll, an improvement from his 38%/59% rating in June (the poll of 1,280 registered voters was taken Sept. 14-15 and has a margin of error of 3.8).

The poll found Democrats have a 12-point advantage in the race for Congress, with 53% saying they would vote for the Democratic House candidate in their district, compared to 41% who said they would vote for the Republican.

Sept. 21Trump's approval rating reached a new low point, 32%, across both of his terms in another poll, from Reuters/Ipsos, that found approval of his job performance among Republicans has declined from 86% in January to 73% (the survey of 1,277 adults was conducted Sept. 17-20 and has a margin of error of 2.8).

Sept. 6Trump's 33% approval rating in a Financial Times/Focaldata poll is his lowest since the groups began asking the question in May and is down three points from last month (the survey of 1,914 registered voters was conducted Aug. 28-Sept. 1 and has a margin of error of 2.6).

The poll found his support among Republican voters has dipped two points, to 72%, a low point.

Negative views of Trump's handling of the economy appear to be continuing to drive down his poll numbers—-with 57% of voters saying they are financially worse off under Trump, compared to 53% last month.

Meanwhile, a plurality of voters, 46%, said Trump is making it harder for Republicans to win in November, and a plurality, 43%, also said his endorsement of a candidate would make them less likely to vote for that candidate.

Sept. 6Trump's 36% approval rating in the latest NBC News survey is one point below what it was in April, a record low in the groups' polling during Trump's second term.

The poll also found a significant decline in his support among his base—41% of Republicans strongly approve of Trump's job performance, down from 52% in the spring, and 62% of self-identified MAGA Republicans support him, down from 71% in the spring (the online survey of 7,105 adults was taken Aug. 20-Sept. 1 and has a margin of error of 3.3).

The share of Republicans who say they strongly approve of Trump's handling of the Iran war has also dropped 18 points, to 30%, and has declined 21 points among MAGA Republicans, to 43%.

Sept. 2Trump's approval rating increased from 42% in July to 44% in a Harvard CAPS/Harris survey released Wednesday, while 52% of respondents disapprove of his job performance (the poll of 2,100 registered voters was taken Aug. 28-30 and has a margin of error of 2.1).

Mood has improved slightly since July—37% said the country is on the right track, compared to 35% in July, and 52% said it's on the wrong track, down from 55% in July, while the share of voters who said the economy is strong is up two percentage points and the share who said it's weak is down two points.

Still, a plurality of voters, 47%, said their financial situation is getting worse, a one percentage point increase from July, 32% said it's getting better (down two points from July) and 21% said it's the same.

The poll found Democrats have a slight advantage in the midterms, with 51% saying they'd likely vote for a Democrat if their congressional election were held today, compared to 49% who'd prefer a Republican, while 54% of independents said they plan to vote for Democrats, compared to 46% who leaned Republican.

Sept. 2Trump's 33% approval rating—his lowest ever in Reuters/Ipsos polling—is unchanged from the past two weeks in the groups' weekly survey of 1,167 U.S. adults taken Aug. 28-31 (margin of error of 2.9).

The poll reaffirmed the cost of living as the most important issue in the upcoming midterms, with a plurality (47%) saying it's their top concern, while Trump continues to log poor ratings on his handling of the economy—71% disapproval/22% approval.

Aug. 31Trump's approval rating has decreased one point, to 32%, since March, and his disapproval rating has increased two points, to 64%, according to a University of Massachusetts Amherst poll of 1,000 respondents taken Aug. 21-26 (margin of error 3.5).

Trump's approval rating among Republicans has declined from 89% to 75% since April 2025, and his approval rating among 2024 Trump voters is down 10 points.


Just 25% of respondents said he is handling the war in Iran well, while 68% said he's not handling it well.

Aug. 24Trump's approval rating held at 33% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll, unchanged from the groups' survey released Aug. 17, while his disapproval rating increased one point, to 65% (the survey of 1,215 adults was conducted Aug. 21-24 and has a margin of error of 3).

Just 31% support U.S. military action in Iran, down from 34% earlier this month and 37% in March.

The share of Americans who believe the Iran war will go on "for an extended period of time" increased to 83% from 80% earlier this month.



Aug. 17Trump's approval rating dipped to 33%, and his disapproval rating went up one point from earlier in August, to 64%, in the latest Reuters/Ipsos survey of 1,166 U.S. adults taken Aug. 14-17 (margin of error 3).

The poll found 80% of Americans, including 87% of Democrats and 71% of Republicans, think U.S. involvement in Iran "will go on for an extended period of time," while just 16% said it would likely end in a few weeks.

The survey also found that for the first time in about a decade, more voters, 38%, prefer Democrats to handle the economy versus Republicans (35%).

Aug. 16Trump had a 35% approval rating and 55% disapproval rating in a Financial Times/Focaldata poll of 1,913 registered voters conducted Aug. 7-10 (margin of error 2.9).



Trump's net approval rating among Republicans has dropped eight points since the groups' July survey, the Financial Times reported.

The poll comes as inflation cooled in July from June, but at 3.4%, it's still higher than when Trump took office as the war with Iran has driven up fuel costs and disrupted the economy.

Meanwhile, Democrats have a five percentage-point advantage over Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections, according to the survey.
Surprising Fact

Trump's approval rating is similar to former President Joe Biden's at this point in his term. Biden had a 42% approval rating in August 2022, according to Gallup.
Big Number

40%. That was Trump's approval rating the week of Sept. 17-23, 2018, during his first term, according to Gallup.

Key Background

Trump began his second term with a 52% approval rating and 43% disapproval rating, according to The New York Times' polling average. He experienced a sharp drop in support with the announcement of his so-called "Liberation Day" tariffs in April last year, and again since the start of the Iran war at the end of February. Voters' economic concerns have remained high throughout Trump's second term, and the Iran war has coincided with an increase in negative views of the economy as gas prices have skyrocketed since the start of the conflict. Trump's sagging approval rating comes as Democrats are favored to regain control of the House, according to Cook Political Report, and pick up some seats in the Republican-dominated Senate.

INVOKING MARS & AIRES

Pete Hegseth Leads Hundreds Around Pentagon in ‘THIS IS WAR’ Shirts & Gets Mocked

Devanshi Basu
Wed, September 30, 2026 


Photo Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Key takeaways

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth led a group of service members in a jogging loop around the Pentagon wearing shirts that read “THIS IS WAR,” sparking criticism from many who viewed it as performative

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth laced up his running shoes this week and led hundreds of service members on an early-morning jogging loop around the Pentagon, all of them wearing identical shirts that read "THIS IS WAR." The Defense Department shared video of the run, and people responded with a wave of criticism aimed at what many called a performative display.

Critics mocked videos showing Pete Hegseth leading an early-morning military run

The department posted two videos showing Pete Hegseth jogging at the front of the pack outside the Pentagon. A third clip featured the secretary, at times audibly short of breath, addressing the troops who joined him. He invoked a motto he first introduced at Quantico.

 "Last year, when we gave a speech at Quantico—we launched the War Department golden rule: Do unto your formation that which you would have done unto your son or daughter's formation," Hegseth said, summing it up as "no games, no gimmicks, no low standards, and no excuses."

After the jogging session, Hegseth boarded a helicopter for the 33-mile trip from the Pentagon to Quantico, where he gave his annual "State of the Force" speech. However, critics seized on the "THIS IS WAR" apparel, pointing out that the Trump administration has repeatedly framed its conflict with Iran as something other than a war. As one X user wrote, "Thought we were trying to stay out of wars?" Another added, "If that's War, you're probably losing it."

The run fits a broader habit. Pete Hegseth, a former Fox News weekend host, has repeatedly posted fitness videos since taking over the military's top civilian post, including clips of spin bike sessions, bench pressing, and pull-ups in a tree with Dr. Oz. He and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also drew ridicule for a joint push-up and pull-up video they branded "The Pete and Bobby Challenge."

7 takeaways from Hegseth’s address to officers: Warfare’s future, faith and a new base

CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM AND KILLER ROBOTS 

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?!

Filip Timotija
Wed, September 30, 2026

THE /HILL

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made a flurry of announcements during a wide-ranging speech to active-duty officers Wednesday.

At the beginning of the address, the Pentagon chief stuck to his bread and butter: culture-war grievances, stripping the "woke" out of the Department of Defense (DOD), bashing the news media for its coverage of the Iran war, and proclaiming the "warrior ethos" has been revived and the U.S. military has been "rebuilt."

But the Defense secretary made several newsy announcements that lean into Hegseth's elevation of faith, create a combatant command, partner the Pentagon with different universities and tease a new domestic military base for which governors will compete.

Here are the takeaways from Hegseth's 52-minute speech at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia:

New combatant command focused on autonomous warfare

Hegseth announced the formation of a new four-star combatant command focused on developing autonomous warfare like drones and defense robotics.

The Defense secretary said it would have "service-like authorities built to scale autonomous and robotic capabilities across the joint force in the fastest peacetime shift in modern military history," with the aim of being operational by Oct. 1 next year.

The Autonomous Warfare Command, or "AutoWarCom," will be initially led by Owen West, a former Marine who is now the director of the Pentagon's Defense Innovation Unit, and Max Strasiser, a Navy SEAL senior chief. Later, a four-star military leader will be announced.

"This command will possess directed manpower, budget, acquisition authorities and create dedicated military career pathways for Officers and Enlisted personnel," Hegseth said in a Wednesday memo.

The new command will test equipment and force designs with "realistic opposition" in exercises and rugged environments to figure out what works on the battlefield, the Defense secretary said in the memo.

Project Meridian and warfare's future

Hegseth revealed that SpaceXAI CEO Elon Musk, Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) will lead a new Pentagon effort to study the future of warfare, dubbed Project Meridian.

The Pentagon chief said the project is meant to harness America's innovators, senior leaders and technologists to look decades into the future and "forecast the creative solution for tomorrow's conflicts."

"It is futuristic on purpose," he said of the project, which he clarified was not meant to develop new strategies or policies.

"We should have the humility to recognize that the best forecasters of future conflict do not solely reside inside the Pentagon," Hegseth said. "There are obvious biases and risks to asking ourselves to both ask the questions and answer them."

Hegseth said Musk, Luckey and Gingrich, under the leadership of Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Emil Michael, "will be focused on discovering, developing, and fielding the weapons and systems that our children and our grandchildren will need in their lifetimes, without any creative limitations or restrictions, on any future battlefield, from under the Earth to beyond the moon."

All three men were in attendance at the Pentagon as Hegseth made his announcement, and the Pentagon chief said their first meeting on Project Meridian would happen immediately following the event in a sensitive compartmented information facility in the building.

States invited to bid for 'next great American' base

Hegseth invited governors to bid for their state to be the home of the "next great American" base.

"We're calling on every governor in the country and adjutant general, every tag across this great republic, to step up to the plate and bring us their best sales pitch," the Defense secretary said.

"If your state wants the honor of hosting 15,000 to 25,000 of America's great troops, show us why and how you're going to do it, cutting through the red tape, offering up the land and rolling out the red carpet for our military families," he said during the speech.

Naval Station Everett in Washington state was the most recent base built inside the U.S., opening in the 1990s. The base is home to several guided-missile destroyers and Coast Guard ships.

Hegseth said the new base will not be a "soulless government installation," arguing the Pentagon will "plan out and chart out a dynamic, self-sustaining power projection platform."

The Pentagon said the base will be off the commercial grid, featuring independent power generation, autonomous systems and advanced air defenses.

"We're talking hundreds of thousands of acres with organic power generation, modern air defenses, and cutting-edge technology, think a fortress," the secretary said. Service members will have "first-class barracks, world-class training facilities, and thriving communities with top-tier housing, school, childcare and healthcare for families."

Hegseth directed Dale R. Marks, who is assistant secretary of Defense for energy, installations and environment, to lead the Pentagon's effort to identify, evaluate, select and prepare an optimal site for the base.

"Rapid advancements in disruptive technologies, growing strategic alignment among peer adversaries, and persistent, sophisticated cyber intrusions against critical defense and homeland infrastructure necessitate a modernized, resilient posture," the Defense secretary said in a Wednesday memo.

'Fortress America' takes bases off civilian grid

Another new initiative revealed Wednesday is "Fortress America," which Hegseth claimed will be "a national insurance policy for the American homeland.

Under Fortress, which stands for "Federal Operations for Resilience, Troop Resources, Energy Supply and Survivability," every major military installation in America would generate its own power independent of the civilian grid, according to Hegseth.

"If an adversary takes down the grid by cyberattack, by sabotage, or by any means, our bases stay lit. Our aircraft keep flying. Our command centers never go dark," he said.

The effort also is meant to bring critical supply chains home, including rare earth minerals, specialty metals, semiconductors and propellants "mined in America, refined in America, built in America by American workers."

In addition, the Pentagon would build up strategic reserves of such critical needs as munitions, fuel, medicine and blood "deep enough that if the world's supply lines break — and in a real war, they're going to break — America keeps fighting anyway," Hegseth said.

To accomplish this, Hegseth said the U.S. military is "hardening every installation on American soil against cyber intrusion, sabotage and drones, and we're securing the high ground and the airwaves, our satellites, our spectrum," claiming that the DOD "will be the insurance policy for the entire nation."

New non-Ivy League partnerships for cadets

The Defense secretary also said the Pentagon will partner with five more colleges to broaden the corps of cadets.

The military training program, called "America's Corps of Cadets," will include Louisiana State University, Liberty University, Tuskegee University, Mississippi State University and Hillsdale College.

"We need more officers from academic institutions like our military academies and senior military colleges, and today we're going to make that happen," Hegseth said.

Each school will be a "distinguished military college" and will be expected to "maintain exceptionally high standards of cadet discipline, tactical instruction and military organization," the Pentagon chief said.

Military academies like West Point, Naval Academy and Air Force Academy commission most of the officers into the U.S. armed forces, followed by senior military colleges like Texas A&M and the Citadel.

Hegseth's office will begin implementation within 30 days, and within four months, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Anthony Tata will transition to become the primary office responsible for the program, according to a Wednesday Pentagon memo.

"From the Ivy Leagues to the most liberal arts colleges, our colleges and universities have become anti-American DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] worshipping woke factories. Qualities like grit and courage replaced with political correctness and social justice," Hegseth said. "God and country traded for Che Guevara and critical theory."

Creates Office of Religious Affairs

In his last proclamation, Hegseth declared he will establish the Office of Religious Affairs at the Pentagon that "will report straight to the top."

"Cutting-edge technology ... new basing and bases ... and a better educational pipeline are still incomplete without the most essential component of our republic: faith," he told the assembled service members.

He said the Defense Department has "a sacred duty" to provide troops with "first-class religious support" wherever they're sent, bashing past administrations for treating the topic as an afterthought.

"Political correctness and secular humanism got a vote. Chaplains did not. Budgets were cut. Resourcing and manpower needs were ignored. Base chapels fell apart," Hegseth claimed. "Decisions about faith and religion were made by secular careerists in cubicles and lawyers running around with red tape."

Starting Wednesday, the Office of Religious Affairs will have "a direct line to the secretary" and will "protect budgets, demand infrastructure, and strengthen religious support," he said.

Hegseth frequently invokes his faith and has declared service members' spiritual health as "equally important" as their physical and mental health.

Earlier this year he revamped the U.S. military's Chaplain Corps, announcing that the officers will no longer wear their rank insignia, instead displaying insignia that reflects their religious affiliation — part of two major changes to the group.

Hegseth defends officer cuts

At the start of his speech, Hegseth defended his plan to cut 20 percent of generals and admirals at the Pentagon, arguing the major shake-up was long overdue at the department.

"Now the media calls that a purge. I call it accountability and long overdue, and frankly, the bare minimum. As usual, what the media levels as an accusation, I wear as an accomplishment," Hegseth said.

"You see, you can't change a culture with the same people who enabled it," he said. "Personnel is policy at every single level."

The move will impact senior leadership positions across the Army, Navy and the Air Force, coming a year after Hegseth oversaw a 10 percent reduction of general officers.

The move comes as he has already fired or pushed out more than two dozen senior military officers across the service branches, personnel changes that have unnerved congressional lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

"You see, last year's speech was not for those generals," Hegseth said during the speech. "It was for you, the backbone of our force, the current and future leaders on the front lines."

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. 

 Airman Exposes Pentagon Pete’s Faith-Fueled Power Play

Laura Esposito
Sun, September 27, 2026


Daniel Heuer / REUTERS

Airmen are expressing "outrage" over Pete Hegseth's exclusion of atheism from a revamped list of religious identities service members can identify with.

The Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a nonprofit that advocates for service members' constitutional right to religious freedom, shared excerpts from a letter it received from an airman who said he couldn't register as an atheist when directed to update his personal record.

"If my previous (withheld) years of service while being an atheist was good enough, why is it no longer?" the airman said in their statement on Saturday. As of Saturday afternoon, the MRFF said it had received 38 similar complaints, Military.com reported.

Trump has given Hegseth free rein in his war on wokeness. / Nathan Howard / REUTERS/Nathan Howard

The United States Air Force announced Friday that it was updating its data systems to "align" with the Defense Department's revamped list of Religious Affiliation codes. The public affairs office press release included a photo of a chaplain with a cross inscribed on his uniform.

A former military chaplain and devout Christian told Military.com that the photo of the chaplain's uniform made it "crystal clear" that the move was an "attempt to push Christianity onto the troops, and there's implicit intimidation there."

A chaplain assigned to the 1st Special Operations Wing wears a cross on his chest. / Airman Ashton Hamby / 1st Special Operations Wing

"Our commitment to the spiritual readiness and religious freedom of every Airman and Guardian remains steadfast," Richard Anderson, assistant secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, said in a statement.


"I attempted to update my code this afternoon and to my outrage found that atheist is no longer an option, an option I have chosen for my previous [withheld] years of service," the airman wrote in a statement to the MRFF.

Under the system, atheists can choose "no religion" or "other religion," the airman wrote. "That is not the point," they continued.

"I along with many other service members, are atheists that do not believe in god," they said.

A Department of Defense spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast.

Dozens of airmen and Guardians have also complained about the new system, Military.com reported on Saturday, with one telling the outlet the move was an "infringement on my religious liberty."

The Defense Department announced in June that it would cut down the number of religious identities service members can register on their personnel records from more than 200 to just 31.

At the time, DOD spokesperson Sean Parnell cast it as a way to streamline support for religious servicemembers, calling it a "long overdue move."

The move immediately drew the ire of several Republican lawmakers after Mormonism was initially excluded from the list. Sen. Mike Lee criticized the changes as "repugnant to any sense of decency, any sense of our common heritage and our common belief that the government needs to not weigh in on doctrinal disputes between various religious denominations."

Since his appointment, Hegseth has been repeatedly accused of eroding the separation of Church and State.

The Pentagon's X account shares photos of Pete Hegseth with Pastor Doug Wilson. / screen grab

In May, for example, the MRFF said it had received more than 200 calls from active-duty personnel across 50 military installations after the U.S. struck Iran in coordination with Israel overnight Saturday. Callers said their commanders had likened Trump's war on Iran to a holy war.

Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor who has been married three times, has also launched a monthly Christian worship series at the Pentagon, where he invited his self-described Christian nationalist pastor, Doug Wilson. The pastor, who has supported repealing women's right to vote and criminalizing homosexuality, delivered a sermon in the Pentagon auditorium.

Pete Hegseth's Secret Plot for Pentagon Purge Exposed

Laura Esposito
Tue, September 29, 2026 


Photo Illustration by Eric Faison/The Daily Beast/Getty

Pete Hegseth is slashing a fifth of leadership positions across the Pentagon as his paranoia and deep distrust of leaders who could potentially undermine his own power deepen.

The defense secretary, who never reached a rank higher than major, will announce plans to cut positions reserved for generals and admirals across the armed forces by 20 percent during his State of the Forces address on Wednesday, a Defense Department official told the Daily Beast.

Hegseth's cuts double the 10 percent reduction in leadership he ordered last year. It also follows his May 2025 order to slash four-star active-duty positions and general officer positions in the National Guard by 20 percent

The former Fox & Friends Weekend host will order that the latest cuts are completed by Jan. 1, 2027, according to a report from Fox News.

“I don’t care,” Hegseth reportedly told Joe Kasper, his chief of staff, after he handed the defense secretary a card listing reasons to keep a top general. / Win McNamee/Getty Images

In a September memo, Hegseth directed Pentagon officials to identify general and flag officer positions eligible for a downgrade, Fox News reported. Others will be eliminated along with their positions.

Since the start of Hegseth's tenure, numerous former and current Pentagon officials have spoken out against the culture of fear that the seemingly insecure Hegseth has created inside the department, clashing with anyone who potentially commands more respect than he does.

All told, Hegseth has already fired or blocked promotions for some 80 of the nation's top officers—roughly 10 percent of the U.S. military's highest-ranking officers.

For example, his widely questioned ousting of "once-in-a-generation general" Christopher Donahue stemmed in part from the fact that Donahue was revered, respected, and admired—three attributes that reportedly, don't exactly describe Hegseth within the halls of the Pentagon.

"I don't care," Hegseth told Joe Kasper, his chief of staff, after he handed him a card listing reasons to keep Donahue, according to The New York Times.

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, a close friend of JD Vance from Yale Law School, also attempted to orchestrate an intervention from the vice president to keep Donahue. But when Hegseth discovered that Driscoll had set up a meeting between Vance and Donahue, he canceled it, according to the report.

Soon after, Driscoll resigned.

Donahue made headlines when he was captured on military surveillance footage as the last U.S. service member to leave Afghanistan. / XVIII Airborne Corps/Handout via Reuters

Then there's Hegseth's so-called war on wokeness. During his tenure, the secretary has focused much of his enthusiasm on blocking promotions for women and minorities, as well as instituting his own version of MAHA: Making the Armed Forces Hot Again.

At his Wednesday address, for example, Hegseth is casting troops who fit specific "physical standards" to support him in the audience—asking top military brass to nominate service members who exhibit "impeccable grooming and uniform standards" and conform to certain body fat requirements to attend his speech, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The service members selected must pass the Army's fitness test and meet its waist-to-height ratio requirement, the Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper revealed, citing an email sent to Army commanders. Some of the chosen service members will also participate in a workout with Hegseth.

Hegseth has repeatedly come under fire for staged outings with military personnel. / X/Defense Department

Additionally, Hegseth, who has faced scrutiny over his drinking and alleged affairs during and between his three marriages, has been repeatedly accused of eroding the separation of church and state.

Among other institutional changes, he has launched a monthly Christian worship series at the Pentagon, where he invited his self-described Christian nationalist pastor, Doug Wilson. The pastor, who has supported repealing women's right to vote and criminalizing homosexuality, delivered a sermon in the Pentagon auditorium.

Hegseth directs military academies to stop giving tenure to civilian professors

Joe Walsh
Tue, September 29, 2026 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memo Tuesday directing institutions like the Military Academy at West Point and the Naval Academy in Annapolis to immediately stop granting tenure to civilian faculty, in Hegseth's latest change to military higher education.

"Tenure often leads to academic stagnation, faculty complacency, and institutional inability to adapt to emerging needs," he wrote. "Additionally, it contributes to curriculum that drifts from the mission of educating our warfighters to the research priorities of the tenured academics."

Hegseth said his goal is to "address the structural mechanisms that have allowed civilian academic norms to dilute our focus on lethality."

The move comes two months after CBS News exclusively reported that top Pentagon officials were considering ending civilian tenure at the military academies and launching a "line-by-line" review of their courses, eliminating classes that were judged to be "ideologically driven."

The service academies' teaching staff includes a mixture of active-duty officers and civilians. Only about 25% of the faculty at the Army's West Point academy are civilians, while the Naval Academy has roughly equal numbers of civilians and officers.

For decades, civilian faculty members have been granted tenure. During a Senate hearing last year, Vice Adm. Yvette Davids, then-superintendent of the Naval Academy, described tenure as a "wonderful recruiting tool" that attracts "the best and the brightest."

The service academies have long sought to balance their roles both as military institutions that prepare future officers and accredited, rigorous universities. Retired Lt. Gen. Steven Gilland, former superintendent of the Military Academy, told lawmakers last year the school is designed to equip future military leaders with "the intellectual agility needed to make critical decisions in the chaos of war."

But Hegseth has pushed for sweeping changes, alleging the military's educational system is ideologically skewed. Since he took the helm as defense secretary, the Pentagon has scrutinized library books that address race and gender, cut ties with graduate programs at Harvard and Princeton, and directed the military to halt all instruction on diversity, equity and inclusion.

Hegseth suggested during his Senate confirmation hearings last year that he planned to take aim at civilian faculty.

"We need more uniformed members going back into West Point, the Air Force Academy, the Naval Academy as a tour to teach with their wisdom of what they've learned in uniform," he said, "instead of just more civilian professors that came from the same left-wing, woke universities."

Trump will unveil $54 billion in South Korean investment in Alaska, site of a tight Senate race

DARLENE SUPERVILLE
Wed, September 30, 2026 


President Donald Trump speaks to reporters at the White House in Washington, Tuesday Sept. 29, 2026, after meeting with top executives of AI firms. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

FILE - U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, speaks at a get out the vote event held at farm in Palmer, Alaska, on Aug. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File) (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

President Donald Trump winks as the members of the media depart the Oval Office of the White House as Essar Capital Director Prashant Ruia, from left, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, John Jovanovic, chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa., and Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, look on, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)


WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is expected to announce on Wednesday plans for South Korea to invest roughly $54 billion in a project to export natural gas from Alaska, a proposal long backed by Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, who's in a competitive reelection contest there.

The investment would mark the second time this week that the Republican president has sought to highlight the promise of foreign investment made possible by his administration's trade policy in states where Republican Senate candidates are in tight election campaigns. He made a similar announcement on Monday in the Oval Office for a massive steel plant in Iowa.

The Alaska investment comes from pledges made as part of a 2025 trade deal with South Korea, which included promises of $350 billion in U.S. investments in exchange for lower U.S. tariffs on South Korean cars, auto parts and other products.

The announcement, first reported by Bloomberg, was confirmed by the White House on Wednesday.

Sullivan, who has been a persistent advocate for the Alaska natural gas project and has encouraged South Korean investment, is a two-term senator facing a competitive challenge from Democrat Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman.
Democrats are targeting Alaska and Iowa

Trump on Monday announced plans for a $15 billion steel plant to be built in Iowa by a Minnesota company owned by an Indian industrial conglomerate.

In Iowa, Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson is in a close U.S. Senate contest with Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek for the seat being vacated by retiring two-term Republican Joni Ernst. Hinson spoke in the Oval Office during the announcement

Alaska and Iowa, where Trump won comfortably each time he has run for president, are among the states where Democrats are targeting Republican-held Senate seats in the 2026 midterm elections, less than five weeks away.

Democrats need to gain a net of four seats in the 100-member Senate to overtake Republicans in the majority.

Voters are worried about fuel costs

Trump's announcements come as voters express concern about near-record fuel prices related to the unresolved war with Iran and as majority Republicans in Congress are facing voters dissatisfied with Trump's handling of the economy.

In a late-July poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, only about one-third of Americans approved of Trump's handling of the economy, and about 7 in 10 described the economy as poor.

 

Russia sends nuclear warning to NATO as tensions rise in the Baltic

By Lili Bayer and Mark Trevelyan
Wed, September 30, 2026 at 5:22 AM MDT
3 min read
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People walk along an embankment of the Pregolya River in Kaliningrad, Russia June 22, 2022. REUTERS/Vitaly Nevar

FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Governor of the Kaliningrad region Alexei Besprozvannykh in Moscow, Russia, March 24, 2026. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo


BRUSSELS, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Russia has warned NATO it would be ready to resort to nuclear weapons if the Western alliance attempted to cut off Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave that borders the Baltic Sea.

In a document sent ‌to NATO and seen by Reuters, Moscow accused the alliance of a "dangerous and reckless course" that entailed "high risks of the outbreak of ‌a direct armed conflict".

The document said this included the possibility of "Russian strikes against decision-making centers in the alliance's member states right from the outset".

"Russia will be ready to use the entire ​arsenal of forces and capabilities at its disposal, including nuclear weapons, in order to defend its territory should NATO countries undertake any attempt aimed at isolating the Kaliningrad Region from the rest of the country," the diplomatic note said.

The warning highlighted Moscow's urgent concern at what it sees as a growing NATO threat to Kaliningrad, a heavily militarised Russian territory that is wedged between Poland and Lithuania and is slightly bigger than the US state of Connecticut.

In a written response, seen ‌by Reuters, NATO said it was a defensive alliance ⁠committed to countering threats to its members from all directions.

"None of NATO's exercises or activities pose a threat to the territory of the Russian Federation," it said.

"We call upon the Russian Federation to end its unprovoked full-scale invasion of ⁠Ukraine. We urge the Russian Federation to refrain from increasingly reckless behaviour towards the Allies and to cease its irresponsible nuclear rhetoric."

RISK OF MISCALCULATION

Nikolai Sokov, a Vienna-based nuclear analyst and former Russian diplomat, said it was becoming increasingly hard for Western countries to keep stepping up their support for Ukraine without tipping into direct confrontation ​with ​Moscow.

He said the Russian warning may indicate that hardliners are gaining influence in a ​debate over how to respond to Western actions that include ‌arms supplies to Kyiv, new sanctions on Moscow, interceptions of Russian ships, frequent military exercises and intelligence flights near Kaliningrad.

"They (Russia) expect more action, including a blockade of the Baltic Sea - just below the level of war in European calculation, but for them this will be open war. I see a risk of mutual miscalculation," Sokov said.

In an online interview, he said Russia and Europe were on a collision course that required caution and calculation on both sides.

Instead of this, the Europeans were applying "full court pressure" and Russia was delivering a serious warning that this was highly risky, Sokov added.

EUROPE SAYS IT FACES 'HYBRID ‌WAR', RUSSIA DENIES WAGING IT

In addition to the private warning, Russian embassies in at ​least three European countries have issued statements in the past three days accusing NATO of escalating ​tensions through military exercises and planning scenarios involving Kaliningrad.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov ​described these as diplomatic reminders to "hotheads in Europe".

Relations, already dire since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, have sharply worsened ‌this year, with European governments accusing Moscow of stepping up ​a "hybrid war" on the continent through acts ​including sabotage and arson.

Russia denies that, and rejects repeated statements by Western politicians that it is gearing up for a possible military attack on a NATO country.

A NATO diplomat said: "I would say that the Russian letter is only another Russian attempt to intimidate Europeans, and that ​the response by NATO is firm and responsible. (It) ‌reaffirms that we will not be dissuaded from supporting Ukraine."

A senior European defence official said: "(This is the) first time since (the) Cold War ​that Russia is threatening us like this. So this is serious."

(Reporting by Lili Bayer in Brussels and Mark Trevelyan in ​London, Additional reporting by Andrew Gray and Sabine Siebold, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

Denmark sees long-term NATO presence in Greenland after Trump deal

By Andrew Gray
Mon, September 28, 2026 


FILE PHOTO: Houses stand in front of the mountain Sermitsiaq, in Nuuk, Greenland, September 19, 2026. REUTERS/Tim Barsoe/File Photo

Danish Defence Minister Jeppe Bruus listens during a press conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, September 24, 2026. REUTERS/Tom Little

BRUSSELS, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Denmark is confident that NATO will maintain a heightened presence in Greenland ‌and the broader Arctic region over the long ‌term following a security agreement with the United States signed last week, the Danish ​defence minister said on Monday.

NATO launched a mission named Arctic Sentry earlier this year to boost exercises and patrols in the region as part of an effort to defuse severe tensions ‌within the military alliance ⁠over U.S. President Donald Trump's push to acquire Greenland.

In an interview with Reuters in Brussels, Danish ⁠Defence Minister Jeppe Bruus said Copenhagen hoped Arctic Sentry would continue beyond this year and next to become permanent.

Asked if he ​had clear ​signals from NATO allies that ​they were interested in ‌such a scenario, Bruus said: "So far we are pretty positive that the increased military presence in Greenland — but also in the Arctic — will continue."

The deal, signed by Trump and the leaders of Denmark and Greenland at the United Nations last week, foresees ‌the U.S. adding two more bases beyond ​its existing one on the semi-autonomous ​Danish Arctic territory. But it ​also envisages a greater role for NATO.

Bruus ‌said such a role would be ​important as melting ​ice caused by climate change opens up shipping routes in the Arctic.

"The build-up of interest in the Arctic, ​also from Russia, ‌from China et cetera, demands that NATO has a ​greater presence in the High North," he said.

(Reporting by ​Andrew GrayEditing by Gareth Jones)