Ft Wayne Times

Chairman of the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee, Jim Banks, announced today that he has submitted a series of amendments to the Military Personnel Subcommittee’s mark of the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). These amendments aim to counteract what he perceives as attempts by the Biden administration to politicize the military.

Chairman Banks stated, “Last year, House Republicans passed the most anti-woke NDAA in history. But thanks to Joe Biden and political generals like General Milley, the Air Force, Army and the Navy are still shrinking as they struggle to recover from the worst recruiting crisis in the history of the all-volunteer force, and trust in the military is at an all-time low, especially among veterans and servicemembers. This year House Republicans must fight even harder for an NDAA that gets far-left partisanship out of the services. The world is in chaos, the People’s Liberation Army is getting stronger and our allies our under attack. Only a professional, patriotic and apolitical military can restore American leadership and deter our enemies.”

The proposed amendments by Rep. Banks to FY25 NDAA include:

1. Merit-Based Personnel Decisions – Requires all recruitment, accessions, promotions in the military be made on merit and prohibits the use of race, ethnicity, and political favoritism in those decisions.

2. Ending Service Academy Affirmative Action – Prohibits service academies from using race as a factor in admission decisions.

3. Disbanding DODEA DEI Steering Committee – Prohibits DODEA from having any DEI committees, including its DEI Steering Committee.

4. Antisemitism in DOD DEI Programs – Requires a report on the degree to which DEI programs in DOD foster antisemitism and whether they try to prevent antisemitism.

It's worth noting that several provisions were included in the FY24 NDAA, submitted by Rep. Banks, to combat what he views as the Biden administration’s left-wing politicization of the military.