PULSE POINTS
WHAT HAPPENED: The Defense Department has withdrawn the nomination of Rear Adm. Michael “Buzz” Donnelly for promotion to vice admiral following scrutiny over drag performances aboard the USS Ronald Reagan during his command.
WHO WAS INVOLVED: Rear Adm. Michael “Buzz” Donnelly, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, and Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).
WHEN & WHERE: The drag events occurred aboard the USS Ronald Reagan from 2016 to 2018. The nomination withdrawal was reported in July 2025.
KEY QUOTE: “Every military officer takes command of units large and small with the understanding they are responsible for everything that does and does not happen under their command.” – William Thibeau, The American Military Project
IMPACT: The withdrawal highlights ongoing efforts to drive woke ideology and its enablers out of the U.S. military under the Trump administration.
IN FULL
The Defense Department has withdrawn the nomination of a rear admiral for promotion to vice admiral, following inquiries into drag performances that took place aboard the USS Ronald Reagan during his tenure as commanding officer. Rear Adm. Michael “Buzz” Donnelly led the aircraft carrier from April 2016 to September 2018, during which time Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, under the drag name “Harpy Daniels,” performed at department-sanctioned events.
The nomination, announced on June 18, was for Donnelly to lead the Navy’s 7th Fleet, its most significant overseas force. However, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has since decided to withdraw the nomination and is seeking a new candidate, according to a Defense Department source. The decision followed scrutiny from Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who had previously blocked Donnelly’s promotion as part of a broader effort to challenge Pentagon policies, including taxpayer-funded abortions.
Tuberville, in a May 2023 letter, called on Navy leadership to disclose the officers responsible for funding and promoting drag queen performances, arguing such programs were unrelated to the military’s mission of national defense. “This is a fight worth having,” Tuberville remarked on social media, referencing Donnelly’s role in allowing the USS Ronald Reagan drag shows.
William Thibeau, director of The American Military Project at The Claremont Institute, noted that the drag performances were not isolated occurrences but part of official Navy programs. “The USS Ronald Reagan drag shows of 2017 and 2018 were not random acts of entertainment for sailors, but were sanctioned Navy programs,” Thibeau stated.
“Every military officer takes command of units large and small with the understanding they are responsible for everything that does and does not happen under their command,” he added.
Donnelly’s nomination withdrawal is part of a larger effort by Secretary Hegseth to eliminate woke ideology and its enablers in the military and return to a traditional “warrior ethos.” So far, that policy has led to a surge of new recruits, with military branches exceeding recruitment targets months ahead of schedule.
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