As anti-ICE protests rage on in California like an open mic night for anarchists, similar flash mobs of outrage are popping up in cities across the country. And one clip out of Dallas really caught fire — mostly because it gave the left something they’ve been salivating over: a woman in military uniform, speaking out against Trump and defending the “resistance.”
The viral clip shows a woman — decked out in camo — passionately condemning the use of military force in response to protests. “We are not pawns for Donald Trump’s agenda,” she says, before launching into a dramatic monologue about conscience, duty, and resisting evil. You could practically hear the MSNBC producers scrambling to get her on air.
But here’s the thing: despite how it looks, this woman is not an active-duty soldier. She’s not in the Texas National Guard. She’s not even in the Reserves anymore. She’s been out of the military for five years.
That little fact didn’t stop the anti-Trump crowd from pretending she was the voice of the entire U.S. military, of course. Because why let the truth get in the way of a perfectly staged piece of political theater?
Supporters of the protest quickly framed the video as proof that even the military had turned against Trump. One outlet called her a “military member.” Others just ran with the image — woman in uniform, speaking against the president — without bothering to fact-check whether she had any authority to speak for anyone besides herself.
Meanwhile, actual members of the military — specifically, the Department of Defense — were less than amused. So much so that the DOD’s rapid response team took to X (formerly Twitter) to shut this down. Not once, but twice.
Their first post was short and to the point: “The woman in this video was discharged from the Texas National Guard on June 5th, 2020. She does not speak for nor reflect the U.S. Army.” Brutal. That’s what you call a hard stop.
Then came a correction. Apparently, she had served in the U.S. Army from 2010 to 2014, then moved to the Reserves until 2020. So yes, she was in the military — just not currently. Not under orders. Not representing anyone official. And not in a position to act like she’s leading a rebellion from the inside.
The DOD didn’t walk back the second part of their statement, either — the part that said she doesn’t speak for the Army. And frankly, that’s the most important detail here.
Because while the media played this up as some kind of internal uprising, the reality is far less dramatic: a former soldier, five years removed from service, wore a uniform to a protest and tried to pass herself off as the conscience of the armed forces. She isn’t. And the real military wanted to make that crystal clear.