West Point professor fired for refusing to omit human causes of climate change files lawsuit

A tenured science professor at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, claims he was fired for refusing to omit the human causes of climate change from his teaching. He has now filed a federal lawsuit against the institution.

Dr. Adam Kalkstein, a professor of geography, told The New York Times that Brigadier General Shane Reeves, the dean of West Point's academic board, ordered him during a meeting last year to remove all references to human contributions to climate change. The directive, Kalkstein said, came as President Trump set the agenda as commander in chief. Kalkstein told Reeves that such a change would be immoral and potentially illegal. When Reeves suggested Kalkstein resign, Kalkstein declined, and the dean reportedly left the room abruptly.

"We're only telling cadets part of the story. We're lying to them, deceiving them. It would be like trying to teach the law without being able to even mention the Constitution," Kalkstein said during the meeting, according to Stars and Stripes.

Six months later, Kalkstein—a tenured professor—was informed that his contract would not be renewed. On Monday, he sued West Point in the Southern District of New York, alleging violations of his First Amendment rights. The lawsuit claims the institution's order would require Kalkstein "to omit a massive, fundamental, essential component of the court and to defy science."

According to The Times, Kalkstein is a conservative Republican who believes military cadets must understand the truth about climate change for national security reasons, not social justice. He wrote to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, arguing that knowledge of climate change causes is critical for competing over Arctic resources and understanding why sea ice is melting.

Hegseth and the broader Trump administration are working to eliminate "wokeness" from government and military institutions, including any acknowledgment of climate change. Early in his tenure last year, Hegseth posted on X: "The @DeptofDefense does not do climate change crap. We do training and warfighting."

This marks a significant shift from previous administrations. In 2021, the Pentagon concluded in a report that "increasing temperatures; changing precipitation patterns; and more frequent, intense, and unpredictable extreme weather conditions caused by climate change are exacerbating existing risks."

Those risks remain, but the Trump administration is disregarding the science for financial and culture-war reasons. Professors like Kalkstein—and the education of America's future military officers—are among the casualties.

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The Iran war has severely worsened the U.S. military's shortage of advanced missile interceptors in Europe.

The deficit is "beyond critical," as supplies have been rapidly and unexpectedly drained by the conflict, according to a Europe-based U.S. defense official and a NATO official who spoke with the Associated Press on Thursday.

The shortage is most acute for Patriot missile interceptors, which can shoot down ballistic missiles and aircraft. These systems have been heavily relied upon during the war to counter Iran's Shahed swarming attack drones.

The problem stems from a supply chain imbalance:

• Iran's drones are small, simple to manufacture, and cost roughly $20,000 each. They can be launched from almost anywhere and use GPS to find their targets. They are typically deployed in large numbers to overwhelm defenses.
• Patriot missiles cost between $3 million and $4 million per unit. An entire Patriot battery system—including launcher, radar, and missiles—can cost as much as $1.1 billion.

Due to the high cost, production of the Patriot system is relatively slow compared to demand. In 2025, Lockheed Martin produced 620 Patriot missiles. By contrast, Iran is capable of manufacturing approximately 10,000 drones per month, according to Reuters.