Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has encountered another obstacle in his efforts to reshape the image of the US military into a more visually appealing ‘warrior’ class. This latest challenge comes in the form of a lawsuit filed by school children.

The Defense Department has found itself in legal hot water after Hegseth mandated the removal of numerous books from military schools. These books, which address topics of race and sex, were deemed to contain ‘woke’ content, prompting concerns and subsequent legal action.

Among the books removed were Maya Angelou’s celebrated work “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and “State of Emergency,” which features a foreword by Cardi B.

In a surprising turn, a federal judge ruled that Hegseth’s directive infringed upon First Amendment rights. This decision arose after a lawsuit was filed on behalf of students ranging from pre-kindergarten to 11th grade.

The ruling mandates that the so-called Department of War replenish military library shelves with the previously banned books, including titles like “White Fragility” and “Was the Cat in the Hat Black?”

Amidst these developments, Hegseth’s leadership of the world’s most formidable military force has been criticized as ‘soul-sucking,’ with some labeling him an ’empty suit’ who is mismanaging the department.

The former Fox News host launched a ‘War on Woke’ when he took over the department, and has since implemented major changes to instill a ‘warrior ethos.’

The administration rebranded the Department of Defense to the ‘Department of War.’ He also vowed to restore ‘scary, tough, disciplined’ fitness regiments because he was ‘tired of seeing fat troops.’

‘We became the woke department. But not anymore,’ Hegseth recently told top generals as he boasted about eliminating DEI from the military.

Besieged Pentagon boss Pete Hegseth has faced yet another setback after a federal judge ordered he return banned books focusing on equality and diversity to military school libraries across the United States

Hegseth launched a ‘War on Woke’ when he took over the department, and has since implemented several highly contentious changes to operations in an effort to instill a ‘warrior ethos’ among personnel

‘No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses. No more climate change worship. No more division, distraction or gender delusions.’

The decision by Biden-appointed judge Patricia Giles came on the back of a lawsuit filed by the ACLU on behalf of students attending military schools in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy and Japan.

Hegseth said at the time that educational materials at the libraries ‘promoting divisive concepts and gender ideology are incompatible with the Department’s core mission.

But the judge’s order so far only affects five schools named in the lawsuit: Crossroads Elementary School at Quantico Marine Corps Base, Virginia; Barsanti Elementary School at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Aviano Middle-High School, Italy; Sollars Elementary and Egdren Middle High School at Misawa Air Base, Japan.

The American Civil Liberties Union had asked the judge to apply her order to all 161 DoD run military schools across the United States and 11 foreign countries, but the request was denied.

Judge Giles said a Supreme Court decision earlier this year set a basis determining ‘universal injunctions likely exceed the power Congress has granted to federal courts.’

As a result, she said her decision would be limited to the five schools named in the lawsuit.

The Secretary of Defense had in April ordered the removal of as many as 600 books from military bases in his effort to rid the department of ‘ woke ‘ DEI practises

Divisions in the War Department flared in September when Hegseth unprecedentedly summoned 800 senior military leaders worldwide for a lecture on stricter fitness rules, grooming standards and his campaign against ‘wokeness’ 

Those schools would not be able to take any further action to remove educational books as the case proceeds through the courts.

Kasey Meehan from PEN America said the decision was ‘a solid first step in a long road to restoring and protecting students’ freedom to read in schools run for military families.’

It is also a bitter blow to Hegseth, who has already faced scrutiny this month with insiders increasingly questioning his ability to lead the department.

One high-ranking officer and two longtime civilian military officials slammed their boss as a lightweight and grandstander who less than nine months into his tenure has lost the respect of the department’s top brass.

Each said the Pentagon is in a tailspin, with widespread uncertainty about Hegseth’s policies and strategies, especially in the Caribbean, and unprecedented deployments of national guard troops to US cities. 

‘What we have here is an empty suit running this department into the ground,’ one of the civilians who has worked in the Pentagon for nearly three decades said.

‘It is soul sucking to witness,’ said the other.

The Secretary of Defense is tightening his grip on staff by barring all military personnel from speaking to Congress without express approval.

He outlined the new changes in a staff memo on October 15, according to NBC News.

The Secretary of Defense is tightening his grip on staff by barring all military personnel from speaking to Congress without express approval 

The memo states the ‘Department of War relies on a collaborative and close partnership with Congress to achieve our legislative goals. 

‘This requires coordination and alignment of Department messaging when engaging with Congress to ensure consistency and support for the Department’s priorities to re-establish deterrence, rebuild our military, and revive the warrior ethos.’

It is the latest in Hegseth’s efforts to tighten his grip on what information comes out of the Pentagon after last week demanding journalists sign a new compliance policy that trampled all over the First Amendment.

The policy bans military personnel from making ‘unauthorized disclosures’ to the media, and all journalists and publications who refused to sign were given a deadline to pack their desks and hand in their press passes.

Dozens of journalists from publications across the political spectrum opted to turn in their badges and left the building last week.

Critics have noted Hegseth’s crackdown on reporters comes after his own major blunder and security breach in March, when he released war plans in a Signal chat without realizing the editor of The Atlantic had been unintentionally added to the group.

Hegseth listed weapons systems and a timeline for the attack on Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen in the chat, but argued no classified information was shared.