CV NEWS FEED // A few dozen soldiers who were discharged for resisting the Army’s now-lifted COVID shot mandate have rejoined the service in the past few months.
Per numbers reported by The Daily Signal Wednesday, only 57 – 3% – of the 1,903 Army service members who were forcibly removed for their decisions to not get a COVID shot have since reenlisted.
This is still a threefold increase from October when just 19 soldiers – 1% – discharged over the mandate were reenlisted.
“Of the 57 soldiers who returned to the Army, 53 are on active duty and four are with the Army Reserve,” explained The Daily Signal.
The publication’s Executive Editor Rob Bluey wrote that “In February, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth announced the Army’s plans for complying with Congress’ repeal of the vaccine mandate.”
“Since then, however,” he added, “the Army has struggled to reenlist soldiers who were forced to leave when they didn’t get the shot.”
Bluey continued:
The vaccine-related dismissals, combined with recruiting woes, have led to staffing concerns in the military. Three branches—the Army, Air Force, and Navy—missed their recruiting targets for 2023. The Army recruited 55,000 but its goal was 65,000, so it fell short by 10,000 active-duty soldiers.
Last month, The Defense Post indicated that the Army sent all 1,903 discharged soldiers “letters with instructions on how to rejoin the force.”
According to photographic evidence, the letters were addressed “Dear Former Service Member,” and written by Army Brigadier General Hope C. Rampy, the Director of Military Personnel Management.
“As a result of the recession of all current COVID -19 vaccination requirements, former Soldiers who were [involutarily] separated for refusal to receive the COVID-19 vaccination may request a correction of their military records,” Rampy stated in the letter.
“Individuals who desire to apply to return to service should contact their local Army, US Army Reserve (USAR) or Army National Guard (ARNG) recruiter for more information,” she noted.
The Defense Post speculated why so few of the discharged soldiers who were given the opportunity to return to action decided to accept the call:
Experts suggest that younger ones may have already found other career paths, resulting in decreased interest in being reinstated.
Older members may have also seen the removal as an accelerated retirement.
>> VAST MAJORITY OF VETERANS SAY MILITARY IS TOO WOKE <<
An American Principles Project (APP) poll released last week showed that 73% of veterans “believe that the U.S. Military has become too political regarding race, gender, and sexuality.”
Rep. Jim Banks, R-IN, during a House Armed Services Committee expressed that these numbers suggest a major recruitment obstacle.
“Even worse, a quarter of the veterans would tell a young person not to enlist,” the congressman said. “And when those veterans were asked to explain why, in their own words, the most common reason was politics.”
