- Hegseth urges military cut ties with Scouts.
- Scouting America is former Boy Scouts group.
- The move reflects concerns over organization’s values.
According to a draft memo to Congress that NPR was able to get, Hegseth stated that the military intends to cut relations with the organization because it is no longer a meritocracy and is intended to "attack boy-friendly spaces." According to its website, Scouting America was established in 1910 with the goal of "preparing young people for lives of impact and purpose" and currently has over a million young members.
For almost a century, the military has supported the organization.
Hegseth allegedly blamed the group for being" unisex" and for encouraging diversity, equity, and addition in the draft memo, which has not yet been transferred. According to NPR, Hegseth also charged that the group didn't" cultivate mannish values."
Up to 20,000 scouts may attend the event, which takes place around every four years. In 2017, during his first term, President Donald Trump gave a speech at the National Jamboree.
According to NPR, Congress authorizes that the Pentagon support the event, but the defense clerk has the authority to refuse backing if he believes it could peril public security. According to reports, Hegseth brought up this point in his memo, claiming that funding the National Jamboree might jeopardize national security.
Congress's response to the idea is unknown. According to NPR, Navy Secretary John Phelan has opposed the idea, saying it might be "too restrictive," and the matter has also created conflict within the Pentagon.
"Passive support to Scouting America through access to military installations and educational opportunities aboard said installations serve as a crucial recruiting and community engagement tool for the [Navy],"
Phelan wrote in another memo reviewed by NPR.
"Prohibition of access could be detrimental to recruitment and accession efforts across the department."
This message follows an April NBC News story that one of Hegseth's senior aides sought to sever connections with Scouting America because it was too "woke." The company had changed its name two months prior, asserting a greater emphasis on diversity.
Hegseth's tone in a speech to hundreds of senior military commanders in Quantico, Virginia, two months ago seems to be reflected in the document that NPR was able to get. The defense secretary lashed out at "woke garbage" and "stupid rules of engagement" there. Additionally, he declared that troops would no longer be able to denounce discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, ethnicity, or religion.
How would cutting military ties affect Scouting America's funding and events?
In a draft memo to Congress attained by NPR, Hegseth criticizes Scouting America for abandoning meritocracy and rather promoting diversity, equity, and addition (DEI), describing the association as" genderless" and as attacking" boy-friendly spaces." Ending this support could make organizing similar large events more delicate and expensive for Scouting America.
Military bases in the U.S. and abroad presently host multitudinous Scout troop meetings and conditioning. proscribing these gatherings at service installations would limit available venues and disrupt being programs tied nearly to military communities.
Although Scouting America doesn't admit direct fiscal support from the Defense Department or civil agencies, the loss of military logistical and labor force support laterally impacts coffers and functional capacity.