Pete Hegseth’s Department of Defense sent the White House an 11-page memo about the steps it has taken to comply with Donald Trump’s anti-trans executive order, according to a copy of the memo obtained by 404 Media using the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Among dozens of other actions, the Pentagon said that it not only changed the signs on bathroom doors to “reflect biological sex” but that it will continue to “monitor intimate spaces to ensure ongoing compliance” and that it will “continuously evaluate and update intimate spaces as necessary.” 

The military also ordered a “review hold on questionable content” at Stars and Stripes, the military’s newspaper, which is supposed to be editorially independent from the Pentagon and which is not supposed to be censored by the Department of Defense.  

Trump’s “Defending Women” executive order, which was an across-the-board war on trans and nonbinary people inside the federal government, required federal agencies to delete websites and resources referencing trans and nonbinary people, eliminate diversity and inclusion programs, kill grants and funding for gender inclusivity programs and research, eliminate gender inclusive bathrooms, and take on a host of other anti-trans policies. As part of the executive order, agencies were required to file a memo with the White House outlining the steps they had taken to comply with the order. So far, 404 Media has seen the memos for 11 different agencies. The vast majority of these memos are one or two pages long, and are very generic; Hegseth’s memo is 11 pages long and includes three different exhibits that takes the entire document to 19 pages long. 

The Pentagon’s memo is far more extensive than any other that we’ve seen so far, and includes details about employees that the Pentagon put on administrative leave because it believed that their jobs were “promoting or inculcating gender ideology.” The Pentagon said it identified 69 people who it believed had jobs that fit this description and put them on leave, but then determined that, actually, their jobs were not primarily about “promoting or inculcating gender ideology” and returned 67 of them to their jobs. 

The Pentagon said it also stopped all social media posts from all of its accounts for 10 days “at all levels of the department” in order to “prepare for reorientation of content on platforms.” It also says “Stars and Stripes put a review hold on questionable content.” Stars and Stripes was founded during the Civil War in 1861. It has long been largely editorially independent and, in 2020, when the Trump administration threatened to shut it down, its top editor said it is “part of a free press—free of censorship, free of command interference, free of prior restraint or prior review.” A “review hold” to ensure that content complies with an executive order from the President is a form of prior restraint and review. It is unclear what the results of that review hold were or whether Stars and Stripes was working on anything that the Pentagon would have wanted held.

Stars and Stripes did not respond to a request for comment. 

When asked by 404 Media, the Pentagon did not deny it put a review hold on Stars and Stripes.  

“We support the First Amendment, and we encourage all media outlets to be fair and honest in their reporting on this administration and the Department,” Department of Defense press secretary Kinglsey Wilson told 404 Media. 

The memo also has an extensive section about steps it took to change bathroom, locker room, and “intimate spaces” policies, which included changing signage and reviewing bathrooms to “ensure designation by biological sex.” The memo notes that it will “monitor intimate spaces to ensure ongoing compliance” and that it will “implement periodic reporting to continuously evaluate and update intimate spaces as necessary.”

“In line with President Trump's Executive Order Defending Women, the Department of Defense is taking appropriate action to ensure that intimate spaces designated for women, girls, or females (or for men, boys, or males) are designated by sex and not identity,” Wilson said.

The Pentagon also noted that Hegseth issued his own, separate order to the Department of Defense about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Most notable, of course, is that Trump and Hegseth have banned trans people from serving in the military, which is affecting at least 15,000 service members and has been the subject of numerous lawsuits. 

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth unilaterally halted a weapons shipment to Ukraine on July 2 despite internal military assessments showing the aid would not compromise American military readiness, NBC News reported on July 4, citing three U.S. officials.

The pause in aid, which included critical air defense systems and ammunition, reportedly caught the State Department, members of Congress, Ukraine, and key European allies off guard.

Ukraine suffered one of the largest attacks on July 4, with President Volodymyr Zelensky calling for more air defense to protect civilians in the cities. The attack on Kyiv killed one person and injured 23 more.

A senior U.S. military review had concluded that while some munitions stockpiles, including precision weapons, were low, they had not fallen below critical thresholds, according to NBC. Despite this, Hegseth opted to stop the shipment. This is reportedly his third such move since February.

"We are not at any lower point, stockpile-wise, than we’ve been in the three-and-a-half years of the Ukraine conflict," Congressman Adam Smith the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said. Smith, who said his staff reviewed the Pentagon's figures, called the justification "disingenuous."

The shipment reportedly included dozens of Patriot interceptors, 155 mm artillery rounds, Hellfire missiles, guided missile systems (GMLRS), Stinger and AIM air-to-air missiles, and grenade launchers.

Two sources told NBC that some of the weapons had already been loaded onto trucks in Poland when the halt was ordered.

Zelensky recently called Patriot systems "real defenders of life," since Patriot missile systems are the best air defense in Ukraine's arsenal. They are considered to be the most effective measure against Russian ballistic missiles like Iskander and Kinzhal.

‘Major casualties among civilians’ — US freeze on air defense missiles is terrible news for Ukraine

The halting of deliveries of air defense missiles from the U.S. will lead to“major casualties among civilians,” a deputy commander in Ukraine’s air defense told the Kyiv Independent. Politico reported on July 1 that the U.S. Defense Department (DOD) had halted shipments of some weapons previously

The Kyiv IndependentKollen Post

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell described earlier the decision as part of a broader "capability review" to ensure U.S. forces remain equipped.

The halt has initiated debate over the future of U.S. support for Ukraine.

Lawmakers from both parties, including Republican Congressman  Michael McCaul, expressed frustration at the lack of advance notice. "Now is the time to show Putin we mean business," McCaul wrote on X.

Republican Congressman Joe Wilson also reacted to the halt, warning of its consequences amid Russia's ongoing strikes.  

"As Americans begin to enjoy the sounds of fireworks in celebration of our Nation's Independence, war criminal (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, who is losing his pathetic war, resorts to scorched earth tactics across Ukrainian cities that predate Moscow's existence," Wilson wrote.

Wilson said he is "confident the Department of Defense will advance President Trump’s objectives stated at The Hague to send additional air defense and approved weapons to help stop this absolute depravity, as allies have and must continue doing at a rapid pace."

Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick  has requested an emergency White House briefing, warning the decision could cost lives.

Trump has denied that the U.S. paused shipments on July 3, contradicting both Pentagon confirmation and reporting.

"We haven't," Trump told a reporter. "We're giving weapons." He also claimed the Biden administration had "emptied out our whole country" and insisted Washington must prioritize its own defense.

‘Nothing but terror and murder’ — Russia pounds Kyiv with record overnight drone, missile attack, 1 dead, 23 injured

Fires broke out across the city as Russia attacked the capital overnight on July 4. At least 23 people have been injured, with 14 of the victims hospitalized.

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Hodunova