Hegseth Enforces Fitness Policy; Some Texas National Guard Troops Replaced in Illinois

The removals follow a Pentagon directive requiring troops to meet strict height, weight, and fitness benchmarks for mobilization and maintain force readiness.

Members of the Texas National Guard stand guard at an army reserve training facility in Elwood, Ill., on Oct. 7, 2025. Scott Olson/Getty Images

Some Texas National Guard troops deployed to Illinois have been removed from duty and replaced after failing to meet military compliance standards, in one of the first public enforcement actions under Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s renewed focus on height, weight, and physical fitness requirements across the force.

“Standards are back” at the Pentagon, Hegseth wrote in an Oct. 13 post on X. He shared a headline from an article in Task & Purpose that cited a Texas Military Department spokesperson as saying that a “small group” of the 200 National Guard members deployed to the Chicago area have been replaced after being found to be noncompliant with certain military requirements.