A study commissioned by the Department of Defense to assess the extent of extremism within the armed services found no evidence that the military harbors a disproportionate number of political radicals.
Conducted by a team of researchers from the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), the study found “fewer than 100 substantiated cases per year of extremist activity by members of the military in recent years.”
The report was inspired by growing concern among members of the incoming Biden administration that the military had been infiltrated by white supremacists and other right-wing extremists. The concerns were largely driven by the Capitol riot, which resulted in nearly three dozen current and former service members being charged.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin called January 6 a “wake-up call” on the extent of right-wing extremism in the military, while then-Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told CNN the problem was “vexing.” “Many of these people,” Kirby added, “work very hard to conceal their beliefs. We can’t be the thought police.”
However, the report found that “of the more than 700 federal cases in which charges were publicly available a year after these events, fewer than ten” were serving in the military at the time of the riot. There’s “no evidence that service members were charged at a different rate than the members of the general population.”
Another of the major takeaways of the IDA study – which relied on over 100 interviews with veterans and military leaders – is that the Pentagon lacks coherent definitions of extremism that are widely understood.
The “DOD has used a wide variety of terms, phrases, and concepts to describe prohibited extremist behaviors and activities. As a result, service members at all levels told the IDA team that they are unaware of or confused about existing definitions and standards,” the think-tank concluded.
“In the absence of a clear and consistent message, there is a risk that misinterpretations could lead to a significant division in the force along political and ideological lines, with some members of the military believing that they are being targeted for their views.”
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal commended the IDA report for confirming that the existing Uniform Code of Military Justice should not be updated to explicitly forbid political extremism within the ranks. “Researchers note that commanders can rely on Article 116 (riot or breach of peace); Article 88 (contempt toward officials); Article 109 (destruction or damage to property); Article 115 (communication of threats), among others such as assault,” the Journal wrote.