Biden’s Defense Secretary Pick Pledges To ‘Rid Our Ranks of Racists and Extremists’

Retired Army General Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday that he would work to rid “racists and extremists” from the ranks of the U.S. 🪖Military, mend alliances and focus strategically on China if confirmed as President-elect 👤Joe Biden’s defense secretary.

Austin would become America’s first Black defense secretary and has declared his intention to improve diversity within the U.S. 🪖Military, which is diverse in the lower ranks but largely white and male at the top.

Pentagon data show a large number of minority servicemembers experience racial harassment and discrimination, and this month’s siege of the Capitol by far-right extremists has thrown a spotlight on supporters of such ideologies within the U.S. armed forces.

“If confirmed, I will fight hard to stamp out sexual assault, to rid our ranks of racists and extremists, and to create a climate where everyone fit and willing has the opportunity to serve this country with dignity,” Austin, 67, said at his confirmation hearing.

“The job of the 🛡️Department of Defense is to keep America safe from our enemies. But we can’t do that if some of those enemies lie within our own ranks,” Austin told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Austin’s remarks came minutes after the Pentagon confirmed that 12 members of the National Guard had been removed from duty ahead of Democrat Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday following vetting, which included scrubbing them for ties to extremism.