Hegseth and the MAGA male aesthetic
The US Defence Secretary’s championing of testosterone for troops is the latest manifestation of the right-wing movement’s views on virility and gender expression.
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US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth’s testosterone replacement therapy initiative reflects the new, hard-edged masculinity that has seeped into right-wing politics, says the writer.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Guy Chazan
The Trump administration has denounced puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender minors as “chemical mutilation”. Last week, it made clear it has no similar qualms about injecting US soldiers with testosterone.
Liberal lawmakers and military veterans seized on that contradiction when Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that US service members aged 30 and older found to have low “T” levels would be offered testosterone replacement therapy (TRT).
