ANN SCHOCKETT
Memo to the Senate: Stop the Marxist Takedown of Our Military! The U.S. Senate must reject Marxist leaders for the U.S. Military Services
ANN SCHOCKETT
Founder, More Like Us; Immediate Past President of the National Federation of Republican Women
I'm Ann Schockett. I'm a proud American and immediate past president of the National Federation of Republican Women. Thank you so much, Frank Gaffney and Dede Laugesen for putting together a most vital presentation on the dangers we are facing by having woke leadership and practices in our country and in our military. My father, Dr. Burton Salpeter, served on the front lines as a captain, battalion surgeon under General Patton. Under threats for his own life, he treated the injured and dying. My mother and occupational therapist served as Lieutenant J.G. in the Navy waves, caring for our wounded soldiers at Bethesda Hospital. They believed in our country and instilled that in me. I thank them and countless others protecting us and safeguarding our freedoms. But will this continue to be the case? For many people in the United States, the military has become an elusive entity of no concern for them since they believe they have no contact with them and their presence has no effect on their lives. Yet that outlook has not always been the case. In the past, citizens understood that it is our military that is trained and tasked to protect our country from direct threats and ensure that regions critical to our country's interests keep stable. Over the past two decades, things have drastically changed in regards to considering serving in the military.
Recruitment has reached critically low levels. Americans have a lower confidence in its worth and need. Gallup reported a 74% public confidence in the military in 2018, but that has declined rapidly, especially due to us withdrawal from Afghanistan. The people who have been advancing to the highest leadership roles in the military have caved to political pressure that gives support to woke practices. According to leaders like former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who graduated from West Point. Quote, The Biden administration has pushed policies and initiatives into our military institutions. This has seriously affected our military's ability to recruit excellent young men and women who wish to defend their country and serve in the proud, storied institutions that rightly reward merit, not left-wing compliance. Secretary Pompeo asserts that the solution to this problem is not to stop criticizing the administration. And cease supporting our warriors. Winning wars and deterring our adversaries demands that we work to fix failures and bad leadership. Making clear that rewarding or punishing servicemen by race or by group is inconsistent with that national imperative and will harm the world's finest military. Many proud military personnel have been quick to admit that they would not want their children to be part of an institution that calls them out as bad, evil, racist, and dismisses the accomplishments of those who gave their lives to protect their country.
In addition to these mounting problems, America has not been doing its part to train enough potential recruits in the latest advances in computer technology to defend us against cyberspace, threats from abroad, such as China and Russia. And sadly, many of our own elected officials at all levels of government do not fully comprehend or appreciate the stark reality of what will happen if we do not fortify our military. Many have become, unfortunately, more concerned about their own re-elections and making deals to benefit their communities in the short term, rather than safeguarding the freedoms that we enjoy now and for the long term. I was. Dismayed to see how extensive that has become in the last nomination for a general who espouses woke values and now is in line to be chair of our chief of staff. Our enemies, foreign and domestic, are amazed and delighted the list grows. Friends, America is in crisis and as time goes on and woke, practices become the focus, such as training and critical race theory and gender ideology instead of core military, educational and mental fitness. As DEI becomes more important than merit and as foreign countries provide needed training and support for potential military recruits, while we stay motionless, we become easy targets. Peace through strength is becoming more and more elusive. Thank you.