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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tackles right-wing extremism in the military, ordering all commanders and supervisors to issue a one-day withdrawal order, to combat extremism in the ranks.
In a Friday memo, Austin gave military leaders a 60-day window to discuss “the importance of our oath of office; a description of the objectionable behavior; and procedures for reporting suspected or actual extremist behavior, ”following reports that some of the rioters who stormed the Capitol on January 6 were active duty and military veterans.
HOME, SENATE APPROVES CIVIL WAIVER FOR SECRETARY OF DEFENSE OF BIDEN LLOYD AUSTIN
“We will not tolerate actions that go against the core tenets of the oath we share, including actions associated with extremist or dissenting ideologies,” said the memo signed by Austin. “Service members, civilian DoD employees, and all who support our mission deserve an environment free from discrimination, hatred and harassment.”
The withdrawal order was first announced by the Pentagon on Wednesday, when Austin noted that while the number of military personnel involved in the attack was “small,” they were “not as small as anyone would like. “, Reported the Ministry of Defense. .
The department has not released information on how many active military service members were believed to be present during the Jan.6 riot, but Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told a conference press release Wednesday: “Either way, this is … no trivial issue and needs to be resolved.”
The Defense Secretary said the order was only the first in a broader strategy to better understand the scope of extremism in the military and “to develop sustainable ways to eliminate the corrosive effects of extremist ideology and conduct on the workforce ”.
Kirby said the fight against extremism is a “thorny issue” that the military has fought against in the past.
A 2019 Military Times poll found that 36% of its active-duty election officials had personally witnessed “evidence of white supremacist and racist ideologies in the military” – a figure that rose from 22% to that of scrutineers in 2018.
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Austin is the first black secretary of defense and is expected to lead the charge in what the Pentagon has said is a downward leadership approach.
“We owe it to the oath we each took and the confidence the American people have in our institution,” he wrote in the note.
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