Biden Administration Continues To Push For Diversity In Military

The Biden administration’s push for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in the military has been criticized by Republican lawmakers for lacking empirical evidence. During a House hearing, Pentagon officials defended their DEI initiatives, arguing that diversity was essential to the military’s strength and readiness. However, they were unable to provide data to support their statements.

House Armed Services Subcommittee for Military Personnel Chairman Jim Banks asked why the military was spending over 6 million man-hours on DEI training, with none of the officials providing any empirical evidence to justify this investment. Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Gil Cisneros, who is also the DOD’s chief DEI officer, was unable to provide figures on the department’s spending on DEI initiatives and the number of employees dedicated to DEI, simply saying:

“Diversity, equity and inclusion are essential to unit cohesion and trust.”

The officials’ lack of knowledge and data prompted criticism from Republican lawmakers, who demanded more transparency and proof of the efficacy of DEI in the military. Furthermore, the officials’ DEI initiatives were also scrutinized after former DEI chief for DOD schools Kelisa Wing was reassigned to another position following tweets denigrating white people.

The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs Alex Wagner stated:

“Our diversity and inclusion initiatives [are] informed by science and business best practices, congressional mandates, data-focused policy reviews and assessments, and the lived experiences of Airmen and Guardians.”

Cisneros was unable to answer questions about Wing’s investigation or her books on white privilege, defunding the police, and the Black Lives Matter movement. House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik called the officials’ lack of knowledge “absolutely unacceptable” and demanded more transparency. Overall, the officials’ defense of DEI was met with skepticism and criticism from Republican lawmakers who saw the push for diversity as political posturing rather than sound military strategy.