Pentagon Pete’s Vax ‘Freedom’ Crusade Backfires Spectacularly

Politics admin June 19, 2026 0 Comments

Pentagon Pete’s Vax ‘Freedom’ Crusade Backfires Spectacularly

Dozens of American troops have fallen ill after Pete Hegseth moved to “restore freedom” by eliminating the flu vaccine requirement for service members.

Nearly 160 troops at the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, have contracted the flu, only two months after the defense secretary scrapped the vaccine requirement, according to The New York Times.

The outbreak circulated through a training wing for Air Force recruits that features bunk beds in open bays and communal meals at large tables.

One recruit in his sixth week of basic training, Keon McDaniel, died on Tuesday after falling ill, though it was unclear whether his condition was tied to the flu outbreak, the Times reported.

McDaniel experienced a medical emergency and was transferred to Brooke Army Medical Center, where he passed away, the Air Force’s 37th Training Wing said in a press release. The cause of the medical emergency is under investigation.

The Daily Beast has reached out to the Pentagon for comment on the flu outbreak.

Hegseth, 46, announced the new policy revoking mandatory flu vaccination on April 21 in an effort to encourage medical autonomy in the armed forces, calling it a “common sense approach” meant to “restore freedom.”

An Air Force official told the Times that only about 40 percent of recruits have opted to get a flu shot.

“Under the disastrous Biden administration, this Pentagon waged an unrelenting war on our warriors on many fronts, including when it came to denying them simple medical autonomy and the freedom to express their religious convictions,” the self-styled “Secretary of War” said in an April video announcing the change.

“That era of betrayal is over,” he added, saying the vaccine mandate had served to “weaken our warfighting capabilities.”

Hegseth said at the time that troops who wanted to get their flu shots “should,” but “we will not force you because your body, your faith and your convictions are not negotiable.”