Photo details
File photo of the Pentagon in Virginia, released online April 10, 1998; the date taken is unknown. It does not depict the proposed base. DoD photo by Master Sgt. Ken Hammond, U.S. Air Force. The supplied rights text identifies the image as a U.S. federal government work in the public domain in the United States.Secretary of War Pete Hegseth called for a new military installation and invited states to make their case to host it, according to an Oct. 2 Pentagon News account of his State of the Force address at Quantico, Virginia. He called the proposal the Next Great American Base.
Hegseth envisioned a self-sustaining base from which forces could be sent into operations, with 15,000 to 25,000 troops. He asked states to offer land and support for military families.
He also outlined a separate initiative called Fortress America. He said it calls for military installations eventually to run on their own power, installations on American soil to be protected against intrusion, and critical supply chains to return home. Those are stated aims; the account does not establish that the work has been completed.
Hegseth said state leaders could pitch their states as the base’s location. The Oct. 2 account gives no proposal deadline, selection date or submission process, and does not establish who is responsible for implementing the two initiatives.
Sources
Reported from public primary documents with AI assistance, independent source retrieval, and separate editorial reviews. No interviews, site visits or equipment tests were performed. Issuer statements retain attribution; announced plans are not completed results.
- S1: www.army.mil — accessed 2026-11-06