America’s top uniformed officer hit back at allegations that the U.S. military is being indoctrinated with so-called critical race theory and seminars about white anger after two Florida Republicans argued that anti-extremism and anti-racist teachings could be detrimental to the troops.
Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, passionately defended the military’s approach to addressing racism and extremism, pushing back against accusations that the effort is creating division and hurting morale.
“I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our noncommissioned officers, of being called ‘woke’ or something else, because we are studying some theories that are out there,” said Milley, the four-star general who was tapped by then-President Donald Trump, during a U.S. House Armed Services Committee hearing.
The hearing was meant to discuss the Defense Department’s budget request, but Milley and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the nation’s first Black Pentagon chief, found themselves having to dismiss questions about whether efforts to root out extremists in the military ranks meant going after soldiers’ political views.
Critical race theory, an academic doctrine developed in the 1970s, emphasizes the impact of racial disparities in the U.S. The issue has become part of a broader debate over “culture wars" in the U.S., with many GOP officials at the state and federal level calling for bans on teaching the subject in schools. They call the doctrine part of an effort by minority groups to rewrite American history.
Milley’s impassioned retort came after Reps. Matt Gaetz and Michael Waltz, a Green Beret veteran, brought up concerns that critical race theory is detrimental to the U.S. military. Waltz held up a seminar handout from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point on “Understanding Whiteness and White Rage” that he said 100 cadets were taught.
Waltz called the offerings at West Point destructive, and he demanded that Pentagon leaders “get to the bottom of what is going on.”
West Point doesn’t offer a course specifically on “white rage,” but it offers an elective social science class for seniors on “the politics of race, gender and sexuality,” which deals with various racial issues.
“I personally find it offensive that we are accusing the United States military, our general officers, our noncommissioned officers, of being called ‘woke' or something else, because we are studying some theories that are out there ... I've read Mao Tse-tung, I've read Karl Marx, I've read Lenin; that doesn't make me a Communist. So what is wrong with understanding, having some situational understanding, about the country for which we are here to defend?"
Referring to the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by extremist supporters of Trump, Milley said: “I want to understand white rage, and I am white and I want to understand it. What is it that caused thousands of people to assault this building and try and overturn the Constitution of the United States of America, what caused that?”
Milley went on to say that future military leaders, such as those being educated at West Point, need to understand what is happening in the country and how society might be influenced by various ways of thinking.
His uniform decorated with medals representing service in war zones from Afghanistan to Somalia, Milley went on to say, “I’ve read Mao Tse-tung, I’ve read Karl Marx, I’ve read Lenin; that doesn’t make me a Communist. So what is wrong with understanding, having some situational understanding, about the country for which we are here to defend?”
Critical race theory, an academic doctrine developed in the 1970s, emphasizes the impact of racial disparities in the U.S. The issue has become part of a broader debate over “culture wars” in the U.S., with many GOP officials at the state and federal level calling for bans on teaching the subject in schools. They call the doctrine part of an effort by minority groups to rewrite American history.
As president, Trump instructed federal agencies to halt racial sensitivity training with a White House memo that condemned such initiatives as contrary to the nation’s “fundamental beliefs.”
Lloyd Austin testimony
In his testimony, Austin told Waltz that “this is not something that the U.S. military is embracing and pushing, and causing people to subscribe to.”
Austin earlier got into a heated exchange with Gaetz, who gave examples of how he said anti-extremist training is damaging to the military. Austin had ordered stand downs, or training days, after the Capitol attack on Jan. 6.
“That is a spurious argument,” Austin told Gaetz. “Thanks for that anecdotal input.”
Gaetz said he had been told by members of the military who participated in group discussions about extremism, which were ordered by Austin in the spring, that the sessions were harmful and counterproductive. He suggested that troops believed they could not complain publicly for fear of retribution.
Austin responded angrily, saying he had received perhaps 50 times as much feedback as Gaetz and that most had expressed appreciation for the opportunity to discuss extremism with colleagues and superiors. When Gaetz suggested that Austin was only being told what servicemembers thought he wanted to hear, Austin fired back: “Maybe they’re telling you what you want to hear.”
Austin also clashed with Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Missouri, over the department’s effort to combat extremism in the ranks. Hartzler pressed him on his definition of extremism and how the military is screening applicants to weed out those considered extremist. Austin repeatedly explained that the military is focused on rooting out extremist behavior, not political ideas or religious beliefs.
Hartzler demanded to know if “a person says they are for President Trump, would that be viewed as extremism?”
“As I said earlier, this is not about politics,” Austin said, with an edge of frustration in his voice. “I want our troops to participate in our political system. That’s what they’re fighting to defend.”
He added, however, that the military must be a diverse and inclusive organization, and that is what the troop gatherings to discuss extremism were all about.
Edited and compiled by ArLuther Lee for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Information provided by The Associated Press was used to supplement this report.
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