INTERNACIONAL
West Point decision to cut ‘duty, honor, country’ from mission statement under fire again
EXCLUSIVE: A United States Military Academy mission statement swap from «duty, honor, country» to «Army Values» is coming under fire again — this time by a conservative judicial and government watchdog group who claims the school engaged in a «cover up» scheme when it altered its mission statement in 2024 as part of an effort to advance a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) agenda.
On March 11, 2024, West Point Superintendent Lt. Gen. Steven Gilland publicly announced that West Point would update its mission and insert the term «Army Values» in lieu of «duty, honor, country.» Even so, Gilland stressed that «duty, honor, country» would remain West Point’s motto as it has been since 1898.
Judicial Watch obtained documents via a Freedom of Information Act request seeking all emails regarding the removal of «duty, honor, country» from the mission statement between officials at West Point.
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Among the documents Judicial Watch obtained is a document from Gilland detailing mission statement talking points for Founders Day speakers that was sent on March 23, 2024. The memo instructs speakers to «AVOID saying ‘removed,’ ‘replaced,’ ‘deleted’—just refer to the ‘updated mission statement and reinforce that the motto remains unchanged.’»
The memo does not explicitly connect the mission statement change to any DEI initiatives.
However, Judicial Watch argues that the talking points document it obtained implies DEI was a factor in the mission statement change because the document also contains an FAQ section that appears to downplay the role of DEI, claiming only five to eight students each year complete West Point’s Diversity and Inclusion Studies minor.
«These records detail how the DEI agenda helped change the mission statement of West Point — and how leadership under the Biden administration tried to cover it up,» Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said in a Thursday statement to Fox News Digital.
But in the memo outlining mission statement talking points, Gilland urged speakers to push back against the narrative that the mission statement change was done for political purposes.
«EMPHASIZE the actual seven values as some in the audience don’t realize Army Values is a defined term and to counter the social media narrative that the Army Values change for political reasons. AVOID comparing DHC to AV—it’s not either/or,» the mission statement talking points document said.
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The U.S. Military Academy at West Point is a selective institution that prepares students to become officers in the U.S. Army. (iStock)
«AVOID the perception that the External Review Team was political or made the decision. The Academy selected them. They advised. Academy leadership made Decisions,» the document said.
The term «Army Values» keeps «duty» and «honor» within its core set of values, but also includes the following: loyalty, respect, selfless service, integrity and personal courage.
Gilland said in a statement announcing the change that «country» is reflected in the term «loyalty.»
«The Army Values include Duty and Honor, and Country is reflected in Loyalty, bearing truth faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit, and other Soldiers,» Gilland said in an announcement about the mission statement change.
Gilland also said that «duty, honor, country» is «foundational to the United States Military Academy’s culture and will always remain our motto.»
An Army spokesperson directed Fox News Digital to Gilland’s original announcement where he wrote: «Our absolute focus on developing leaders of character ready to lead our Army’s Soldiers on increasingly lethal battlefields remains unchanged.»
West Point is one of several U.S. military academies that trains students to become military officers.
Meanwhile, West Point’s mission statement has been changed nine times in the past century, and the words «duty, honor, country» didn’t make it into West Point’s mission statement until 1998.
As of March 2024, West Point’s mission statement is: «To build, educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values and ready for a lifetime of service to the Army and Nation.»
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West Point cadets in formation. (U.S. Military Academy)
West Point’s previous mission statement, first adopted in 2005, remained: «To educate, train and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that each graduate is a commissioned leader of character committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country and prepared for a career of professional excellence and service to the Nation as an officer in the United States Army.»
West Point’s superintendent at the time, Lt. Gen. William Lennox, requested the change in 2005 and then-Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker approved the change.
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Meanwhile, Republicans have pushed to incorporate «duty, honor, country» back into the mission statement. For example, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, spearheaded legislation in January to add the words back to the military academy’s mission statement.
«For centuries, the United States Army has set the global standard for military excellence because its leaders embrace a lifetime of selfless service and embody the values of ‘Duty, Honor, Country.’ West Point’s removal of these core values from its mission statement risks eroding the foundation of American military leadership,» Cruz said in a statement in January.
MILITARY,Army Black Knights,Army,DEI,National Security
INTERNACIONAL
«La guerra terminó, Bibi»: paso a paso, los detalles del acuerdo en Gaza, relatados por un negociador clave
Los intercambios con el enviado estadounidense
Trabajadores de Defensa Civil llevan el cuerpo de un palestino sin identificar, muerto bajo los bombardeos de Israel, en Deir al-Balah, Gaza. Foto: EFE «No podemos firmar esto»
Los cinco puntos de los israelíes:
Personal médico reza frente a los cuerpos de palestinos entregados por Israel tras el acuerdo de alto el fuego, en Khan Younis, Franja de Gaza, este miércoles. Foto: AP «Tenemos un plan»
Homenaje en el sur de Israel a un militar muerto en el ataque de Hamas al kibbutz Nir Yitzhak, el 7 de octubre de 2023, y cuyo cuerpo fue devuelto días atrás, luego del alto el fuego. Foto: REUTERS INTERNACIONAL
Ongoing government shutdown threatens holiday travel as pilots rally for lawmakers to reach an agreement
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A pilots association jumped into the government shutdown fray Wednesday, calling on U.S. lawmakers to pass a «clean continuing resolution» and reopen the government, citing the mounting strain the shutdown has placed on airport employees.
«Our air traffic controllers and the broader air traffic system are already operating under immense pressure — a government shutdown only compounds that stress and threatens the efficiency of our skies as we see the impact of reduced controller availability at facilities across the country,» Jody Reven, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, wrote in a Wednesday statement.
«Likewise, TSA professionals continue to show up every day to safeguard the traveling public, even without pay. These men and women deserve our full support and the certainty of a paycheck,» he continued.
The government shutdown has persisted since Oct. 1, when Senate lawmakers failed to reach a funding agreement before a midnight deadline. The Trump administration and Republicans have since pinned blame for the shutdown on Democrats, claiming they sought taxpayer-funded medical benefits for illegal immigrants.
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Pilots associations are calling on U.S. lawmakers to reach a funding agreement to reopen the government as holiday travel looms. (Joseph Prezioso/AFP/Getty Images)
Democrats, however, have denied the claims and pinned blame for the shutdown on their Republican colleagues.
The shutdown has led to delays at massive travel hubs such as Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Newark, New Jersey, as air traffic controllers — who are employed by the Federal Aviation Administration — suffer staffing shortages.
Reven’s statement comes as travelers gear up for holiday flights for Thanksgiving and Christmas, with a White House official telling Fox News Digital that as the shutdown continues, it «threatens to ruin the holidays.» The 2025 holiday season is expected to break travel records as Americans book trips at a higher pace than 2024, travel forecasters reported in October.
«There is no reason the Democrat shutdown should have ever happened, let alone last this long,» the official said. «But the longer it goes on, the more it threatens to ruin the holidays, not only for the Americans missing paychecks but also for every American that travels during the holidays.»
The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association’s press release specifically called on lawmakers to pass a budget as the nation’s entire National Airspace System depends on it.
TRUMP’S WEEK IN REVIEW: SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWNS AND ARMED CARTEL CONFLICT
President Donald Trump said the government shutdown that took effect Oct. 1, 2025, will likely include mass layoffs and program cuts. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
«Pass a clean Continuing Resolution, return to Washington, and work in a bipartisan manner to address the challenges each side is so passionate about,» it stated. «Our National Airspace System, the workers that support it, and the traveling public depend on it.»
When approached for comment on the statement, White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers demanded Democrats «stop causing chaos.»
«Democrats say that every day of the shut down gets better and that they want to use suffering families as leverage to achieve their radical left-wing agenda — but the people they’re using as ‘leverage’ disagree,» Rogers said. «From pilots to flight attendants and air traffic controllers, their message is simple: the Democrats need to stop causing chaos and end the shutdown.»
The Air Line Pilots Association, the world’s largest airline pilot union, also called on lawmakers to reopen the government earlier in October.
«The job of keeping aviation safe and secure is tough on an easy day, but forcing them to do it without pay undermines the safety and security of our entire system,» Jason Ambrosi, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, said in a statement Oct. 15. «We are at a critical moment in aviation safety, and we need our leaders to be focused on the necessary infrastructure and staffing improvements.»
WITH THE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN THREATENING AIR TRAVEL, A GOP BILL SEEKS TO KEEP FLIGHTS RUNNING
President Donald Trump accused Senate Democrats of «holding the entire federal government hostage.» (Getty Images)
President Donald Trump accused Senate Democrats of «holding the entire federal government hostage» Tuesday while demanding the government reopen by passing a «clean, bipartisan CR.»
«They are the obstructionists,» he said. «And the reason they’re doing it is because we’re doing so well. We’re doing well all over the world.»
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday that he and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., reached out to Trump to request a meeting to negotiate an end to the shutdown.
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«Hakeem and I reached out to the president today and urged him to sit down and negotiate with us to resolve the healthcare crisis, address it and end the Trump shutdown,» Schumer said. «He should sit — the things get worse every day for the American people. He should sit down with us, negotiate in a serious way before he goes away.»
Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller contributed to this report.
travel,donald trump,government shutdown,democrats senate
INTERNACIONAL
El Parlamento israelí avanza en un proyecto de anexión de Cisjordania bajo una fuerte condena palestina
El Parlamento israelí (Knéset) aprobó este miércoles, en una lectura preliminar con 25 votos a favor y 24 en contra, una propuesta para anexionar el territorio palestino ocupado de Cisjordania.
“El proyecto de ley para aplicar la soberanía a los territorios de Judea y Samaria (como llama Israel al territorio palestino) fue aprobado en lectura preliminar por una mayoría de 25 a favor y 24 en contra”, detalló la Knéset en su cuenta en X.
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Este primer paso precede a otras tres votaciones que serán necesarias en el Parlamento para convertir este proyecto en ley. El proyecto sostiene que “el Estado de Israel aplicará sus leyes y soberanía a las zonas de asentamiento en Judea y Samaria, para establecer el estatus de estas áreas como parte inseparable del Estado soberano de Israel”.
La iniciativa generó una fuerte condena de la Autoridad Nacional Palestina (ANP), que gobierna en algunas zonas del enclave, y del grupo islámico Hamas.
“Gran Israel”
El parlamentario Avio Maoz, líder del partido Noam, es el impulsor de esta ley. Durante la sesión parlamentaria, declaró que “el Señor, bendito sea, dio al pueblo de Israel la Tierra de Israel”, en una alusión al ‘Gran Israel’ que borra del mapa los territorios palestinos.
Esta votación preliminar coincide con la visita en Israel del vicepresidente de Estados Unidos, JD Vance, quien supervisa el plan del alto el fuego en Gaza junto al primer ministro israelí, Benjamín Netanyahu, y altos cargos militares. Un hombre lleva una bandera palestina frente a tres soldados israelíes cerca de Nablus, en Cisjordania (Foto: EFE)
“Ha llegado el momento de aplicar la soberanía plena sobre todos los territorios de Judea y Samaria (Cisjordania) la herencia de nuestros antepasados, y de promover acuerdos de paz a cambio de paz con nuestros vecinos desde una posición de fortaleza”, celebró en X el ministro de Finanzas, el ultraderechista y colono, Bezalel Smotrich.
El ministro de Seguridad Nacional, Itamar Ben Gvir, también de extrema derecha y colono, escribió en su cuenta de X: “¡Ha llegado el momento de la soberanía ahora!”.
Leé también: Israel aseguró que lanzó “153 toneladas de bombas” en Gaza y acusó a Hamas de incumplir el cese el fuego
Ambos ministros ya exigieron a mediados de septiembre al primer ministro israelí, Benjamín Netanyahu, la anexión de la Cisjordania en respuesta al reconocimiento del Estado palestino por parte de más de una decena de países, entre ellos Reino Unido, Canadá y Australia.
Palestina no cuenta con continuidad territorial, y mientras en Gaza gobernaba la rama política de Hamás, en Cisjordania permanece la Autoridad Nacional Palestina (ANP), encabezada por Mahmud Abás.
E la mayor parte de esta zona (la denominada Área C que equivale al 60 % del territorio). Israel posee tanto control militar como civil desde los Acuerdos de Oslo.
Además, existen cientos de puestos de control militares israelíes a lo largo de toda Cisjordania, y un sistema de permisos que no permite el libre movimiento de los palestinos entre ciudades.
Fuerte condena palestina
La organización islamista Hamas consideró que el proyecto de anexión es “nulo, sin valor e ilegítimo”.
“Afirmamos que los frenéticos intentos de la ocupación por anexionar las tierras de Cisjordania son nulos, sin valor e ilegítimos. No cambiarán el hecho de que Cisjordania es tierra palestina en virtud de la historia, el derecho internacional y la opinión consultiva emitida por la Corte Internacional de Justicia en 2024”, afirmó un comunicado.
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En tanto, el ministerio de Exteriores palestino aseguró que Israel “no tendrá ninguna soberanía” sobre Cisjordania. En un comunicado, difundido en su cuenta de X, reiteró que “la tierra palestina ocupada en Cisjordania, incluida Jerusalén, y la Franja de Gaza, constituyen una unidad geográfica única sobre la cual Israel no tiene soberanía, y que la soberanía pertenece exclusivamente al pueblo palestino”.
La Corte Internacional de Justicia emplaza a Israel
Por otra parte, la Corte Internacional de Justicia (CIJ) advirtió que Israel no fundamentó los vínculos que asegura que la Agencia de Naciones Unidas para los Refugiados de Palestina en Oriente Próximo (UNRWA) tiene con Hamas y pidió al gobierno de Netanyahu cumplir con su obligación de aceptar y facilitar los planes de ayuda a Gaza proporcionados por la ONU. Según afirmó Israel no debe usar el hambre como método de guerra.
El tribunal consideró que el impedimento sustancial por parte de Israel al acceso de ayuda humanitaria a Gaza durante un periodo significativo de tiempo ha tenido consecuencias catastróficas para la población civil en la Franja.
La población local de la Franja de Gaza ha sido abastecida de forma insuficiente. En tal situación, Israel, como potencia ocupante, tiene la obligación de aceptar y facilitar los planes de ayuda, advirtió el presidente de la CIJ, el juez japonés Yuji Iwasawa, durante la lectura de la decisión del tribunal.
Israel tiene la obligación, añadió, de garantizar las necesidades básicas de la población local, incluidos los suministros esenciales para su supervivencia.
(Con información de EFE)
gaza, Cisjordania, Israel
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