DAVID MARCUS: Only Hegseth can save storied Virginia Military Institute from woke state lawmakers

Last week, the Department of War, under Secretary Pete Hegseth, took to social media to back up VMI, writing that "the stability of this proven leadership pipeline is a matter of direct national security interest" and that the department "reserves the right to take extraordinary measures to protect the integrity of VMI." "Although ‘Charge of the New Market Cadets’ was completed during a time in American history when ‘lost cause' ideology was pervasive in Virginia, today the painting serves the VMI community not as a commemoration of a Confederate victory or veneration of the Confederacy," it says. With Democrats in clear control of the political power in Virginia, the threat to VMI’s funding and future is very real, which is why it is so vital that Hegseth and the Department of War make clear that they are a backstop to keep this special place running.