The Department of Defense (DoD) has followed President Trump’s executive order to eliminate all Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs and race-based hiring practices. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth immediately issued a directive to shut down DEI offices across all military and civilian DoD agencies. Hegseth emphasized that the Pentagon would comply with the order without exceptions and warned of termination for non-compliance.

In a similar move, Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Charles Ezell, instructed all federal agencies to close DEI offices by Wednesday, placing employees on paid leave. Some agencies have reportedly tried to bypass the order by renaming DEI programs, prompting officials to encourage reporting any such efforts.

Meanwhile, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead Health and Human Services (HHS) may gain support from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse due to their long friendship. Kennedy’s confirmation hearings will take place next week before the Senate Finance and HELP Committees, with the Finance Committee ultimately deciding his nomination.