We already know what President Trump thinks of DEI. He tried to rid the government of it in his last term and has pledged to eliminate it from the Armed Forces on day 1 of his next term. How will this be done?
Reports indicate that the President has instructed his staff to prepare an Executive Order for him to sign on the first day of his new administration banning DEI from the military. Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth has made similar statements. Some in Congress have also indicated intent to introduce legislation to ban DEI from the entire government. How will orders or laws to eliminate DEI be received by those now serving and how will the military react especially those in senior positions who are all in for DEI?
Reality is that DEI is now deeply embedded in the institutions of the military from decades of infiltration and from the previous mandates of both Presidents Obama and Biden. The early roots of DEI in the military can be traced back a long way to the general liberalization of American society. The baby boomer generation was conservative and ideas like Critical Theory, Critical Race Theory, and DEI were unknown concepts. Had they been advanced earlier, military personnel would have rejected them as nonsense. CRT and DEI date back decades in academia where they are now a permanent part of those institutions. In more recent years they were also gradually introduced into our K-12 schools. The liberalization of our society had already begun with anti-government, anti-war protests during Vietnam and in the decades following. American schools began liberalization decades ago with the abolishment of prayer in schools. Since at least the 1960’s academia has been becoming more and more liberal with the trickle-down effect of grads in each succeeding decade being much more liberal than the previous one. The teaching profession from K-12 was long ago taken over by liberals and liberal teachers’ unions nationwide. So, the roots of a more liberal military can be directly traced to a general liberalization of American education and society beginning decades ago. The military draws from the general populace, so naturally the manpower of our military over time has become somewhat more liberal in beliefs than was the case from previous generations.
Fast forward to the present day and it should be no surprise to anyone that a large percentage of today’s military is liberal in their political outlook. When in 2011, President Obama launched DEI in a big way into the military, it was not only policy because as the Chief Executive it was within his authority to establish policy for the military, but it was also accepted enthusiastically as the right thing to do by a large segment of the military leadership and serving members. Surveys indicate that today probably the military still leans conservative but there are more liberal military members than ever. Ronald Henderson of Military Modelling in an article published November 28, 2024, reports the following data:
Those current members who support DEI will be dismayed that it is to be abolished and will object. Some will vote with their feet and leave the military. It is hard to predict but is doubtful that many will leave. All who serve are assumed to be Patriots and continuing to serve may outweigh unhappiness about the DEI policy being changed. So, many will just say Roger, Wilco and will continue to faithfully serve. Some, however, will be rebellious against anti-DEI orders and will stay for the purpose of undermining the authority of those who are trying to rid the military of DEI. We already know this is what happened during Trump’s first term as the embrace of DEI continued unabated during that time despite efforts to end it.
How should the abolishment of DEI from the military be accomplished in this sort of atmosphere? Should everyone be required to retake their oath of office? Should some sort of anti-DEI pledge be required of every serving member? Should all joining the military be required to sign an acknowledgement that DEI is not allowed in the military of 2025? Should all military be given education on the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Fair Housing Act of 1968, other cases mandating the abolishment of racism throughout history up to the recent SFFA v. Harvard and SFFA v. UNC cases which ban discrimination in college admissions? Should the military try to find out who supports DEI for the purpose of purging them from the military? Will a lawful order to stop DEI be followed by most now serving such that its adverse impact will be minimized? I don’t know the answers to these and many other questions. I pose the questions by way of saying to our current and future leaders that you better be thinking about this and finding the solution to banning DEI. Unity throughout the force is needed for focus on readiness once again becomes paramount throughout the force.
Our military is more divided and more challenged inside and out than at any time since the Vietnam war. The evidence for this is overwhelming ranging from testimony of serving members, retention and recruiting shortfalls in recent years, and manifest poor readiness reports given by the services themselves. GAO, the Congressional Research Service, the Congressional Budget Office, and Heritage Foundation’s annual military power index have all reported on our military’s declining readiness. That we have enemies worldwide that wish us ill is obvious to the most casual observer. China has the ambition to rule the world and their master plan to accomplish that by 2049 is well on its way to fruition. I have written extensively on the topic in a series of articles that have appeared this year in the Patriot Post. You can read those articles at this link. Due to our perceived political, economic, and military weaknesses, radicals and despots around the world have launched wars to advance their own agendas. And America has done little to stop those conflicts under the current administration’s watch.
It is imperative that going forward the US military be completely refocused and united in recruiting, training, and preparing for conflicts around the world. It is urgent that whatever is the method for uniting the US military behind a completely merit-based raison d’être be accomplished smoothly and effectively immediately after President Trump’s second inauguration. The US military cannot survive if it is divided into factions for and against DEI. Fortunately, several recent shifts have occurred that bolster the truth that DEI is seriously flawed. First, industry has begun to abandon DEI, recognizing its serious flaws. Second, recent academic data find that DEI just does not work. It is counterproductive and creates strife within organizations. It is up the President Trump, his transition team, and the new appointees to plot a course for successfully uniting the US military rapidly behind the idea of merit for all. We must be united to fight and win our nation’s wars. DEI in the military must be discarded to the dustbin of history.
CAPT Brent Ramsey, (USN, Ret.) has written extensively on Defense matters. He is an officer with Calvert Group, Board of Advisors member for the Center for Military Readiness and STARRS, and member of the Military Advisory Group for Congressman Chuck Edwards (NC-11).
