Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida mocked the Biden admin on Friday over military recruiting, saying that under Biden, the military has “lost its way.”
“When I see them focusing on things like drag queens for recruiting, you’re like, this really has lost its way, and is it any wonder that recruiting is in the toilet right now?” DeSantis said Friday in Bedford, New Hampshire.
“So, I think that you need to restore a sense of mission, and it’s all about being able to fight and win wars, and when you have that sense of mission, and nothing’s going to detract you from it, man, morale goes through the roof, because people feel like they’re part of something that matters,” said DeSantis.
DeSantis served as a Navy judge advocate general in Iraq and at Guantanamo Bay.
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On Friday, DeSantis joined fellow Florida Republicans who have taken a strong stance on this issue.
As The Free Press reported last week, Florida Republican Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott are among a growing chorus of lawmakers who want the Navy to explain why drag queens are used to recruit new sailors.
Rubio and Scott were among 14 GOP senators who fired off a letter last week to Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro about the service’s “Digital Ambassador” pilot program, which made headlines last week after its star, Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, turned out to be a drag queen named Harpy Daniels.
“While we understand the importance of social media for modern recruiting, we are concerned about both the promotion of a banned app and behavior that many deem inappropriate in a professional workplace,” the senators wrote to Del Toro.
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They pointed out that Congress passed, and President Joe Biden signed, the “No TikTok on Government Devices Act.” The law seeks to address concerns that China could exercise its legal and regulatory muscle to use Tik Tok to gather private user data or to push misinformation favoring the Chinese Communist Party.
The CCP also could use TikTok to obtain classified information by targeting federal employees, their families, and close contacts.
The problem, however, is that Kelley is a drag star on TikTok.
“The bottom line is that the Navy should not be promoting use of TikTok, an app banned on Department devices, on the personal devices of servicemembers or its ‘ambassadors,’” lawmakers wrote.
“We understand the need to reach broadly across the eligible population to improve recruiting outcomes, but we question promotion of social media influencers who post behaviors or activities many Americans deem inappropriate.”
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As The Free Press reported last week, Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz called out Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for lying about the Pentagon’s use of drag queens.
The senators noted that the Navy itself, in a 2019 social media handbook, stated, “It’s often hard to distinguish between the personal and the professional on the internet, so Sailors should assume any content they post may affect their personal careers and the reputation of the Navy more broadly.”
“This begs the question whether the Navy endorses the personal posts of its influencers and ‘ambassadors.’ If so, does the Navy endorse drag shows? Where does the Navy draw the line on promotion of the personal activities of its influencers? Would the Navy enlist burlesque or exotic dancers to reach possible recruits?” they wrote to Del Toro.
“Such activity is not appropriate for promotion in a professional workplace or the United States military.”
As part of their oversight mission, the lawmakers asked the Navy’s chief to update them on the status of the Navy’s Digital Ambassador Pilot Program, say whether it will continue, and whether the service can track its effectiveness.
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They also want to know how much it costs, whether the influencers paid or offered “special incentives,” and whether Navy officials are skirting the TikTok ban.
“At a time when our nation’s military is facing a recruiting crisis, it is as important as ever to reach broader swaths of the eligible population — but not at the cost of privacy, security, or professionalism,” the senators concluded.
“The United States military has a long history of successfully recruiting by promoting patriotism, valor, and the myriad of benefits of serving through campaigns such as ‘The Few. The Proud.’ and ‘Be All You Can Be.’ The Navy should follow both the letter and spirit of the law as well as its own social media policies as it seeks to modernize its recruiting campaigns to build a strong and professional fleet capable of winning America’s wars, deterring aggression, and maintaining freedom of the seas.”
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