Pentagon Ends DEI Policies to Restore Military Readiness

The Biden administration’s radical push for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the military is officially over. The Department of Defense (DoD) announced Wednesday that it is scrapping DEI policies, declaring them “incompatible” with the core mission of the U.S. military winning wars.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, appointed under President Donald Trump, made it clear that the Pentagon is returning to a focus on combat readiness, eliminating the divisive, race-based policies that weakened morale and military effectiveness.

Key changes include:

• Merit-Based Promotions: Race, gender, and ethnicity will no longer factor into promotions or special duty assignments. The military will select the best-qualified individuals based on performance and skill.

• Eliminating Quotas: No more race- or gender-based targets for hiring, admissions, or career advancements. The military will operate purely on merit.

• Banning Ideological Indoctrination: Critical Race Theory (CRT), gender ideology, and DEI training will be removed from all military curriculums and workforce training.

• Strengthening Military Education: Service academies will return to teaching America’s founding principles, reaffirming that the U.S. is the greatest force for good in history.

• Shutting Down DEI Bureaucracies: All advisory boards and councils pushing DEI and gender ideology will be dismantled.

Hegseth stressed that the military’s strength comes from its unity, not identity politics. "We will focus on lethality, meritocracy, accountability, standards, and readiness," he stated. "Providing service members an equal opportunity to excel will help us remain the strongest and most lethal fighting force the world has ever known."

Under Biden, the military had been forced to embrace left-wing social engineering, diverting attention away from warfighting. Recruiting numbers plummeted as woke policies alienated traditional military families. A 2022 Heritage Foundation report rated U.S. military readiness as “weak” for the first time, warning that DEI policies were undermining cohesion and operational effectiveness.

President Trump’s administration is making it clear: The U.S. military’s priority is national defense, not progressive activism.

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