1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

I am writing to demand accountability for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's demonstrably false statements regarding Scouting America's membership policies. On Friday, Secretary Hegseth claimed in a social media video that Scouting America would "modify its policy to make clear that membership will be based solely on biological sex at birth and not gender identity." This claim is categorically untrue. Scouting America President and CEO Roger Krone directly contradicted Hegseth's statement that same day, telling The Associated Press, "We have transgender people in our program, and we'll have transgender people in our program going forward." In a memo to members, Krone emphasized that "Scouting America will continue to welcome and serve all youth. That commitment is unwavering." The organization's spokesperson confirmed to The Advocate that "Scouting America remains steadfast in our commitment to providing a place for all young people to learn, grow, and thrive. We will continue to welcome all youth into our programs." A Cabinet secretary spreading verifiably false information about a private organization's policies is unacceptable. Hegseth's fabrication misrepresents an organization serving nearly one million youth from every corner of American life and undermines public trust in government communications. While Scouting America is implementing some changes in response to administration directives, including waiving fees for military families and discontinuing the Citizenship in Society merit badge, Krone stated clearly that the rules governing who can join are not being altered. I urge you to publicly call for Secretary Hegseth to issue a correction and retraction of his false statements. Government officials must be held to basic standards of truthfulness, particularly when making claims about organizations that serve children and families. The American people deserve accurate information from their leaders, not politically motivated misinformation that contradicts the stated positions of the organizations being discussed.