In the early part of the last century, the popularity of smoking was at its apex with about half of America lighting up. Believe it or not, back then it was not uncommon to find advertisements touting the health benefits of cigarettes. In fact, in 1937, <a href="https://www.history.com/news/cigarette-ads-doctors-smoking-endorsement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Philip Morris</a> heavily advertised that a study conducted by doctors found that their cigarettes cleared up any and all cases of throat irritation. Just imagine how difficult it would have been to convince an avid smoker back then that this was complete hogwash. Maybe some of you have experienced exactly that difficulty with parents or grandparents who smoked. 
We have a similar challenge today, but in a completely different arena. That arena concerns our American culture – a culture that has historically stressed excellence, meritocracy, and equality of opportunity. It is rapidly being replaced with a different ideology known best by the deceptively innocent catch phrase of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion or DEI.
Those certainly sound like uncontroversial words and concepts, and DEI proponents would have you believe that it is about embracing individual differences, tolerance of people who are different, improving teamwork and output, ensuring equal opportunity, and combatting harmful racial and gender biases. Only a heartless, bigoted, sexist, illogical soul could object to any of that, right? 
Regrettably, nothing could be further from the truth. In practice, like touting the health benefits of cigarettes, the words Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion bring with them the opposite of virtually everything they claim to promote.  
Sadly, thanks to billions of dollars of marketing — akin to the cigarette smoking in the past — many if not most Americans are blind to the real impact of DEI. To these people, critics sound off base or as though they are merely throwing out random derogatory names when they refer to DEI as Marxist. That is understandable because it is a particularly well camouflaged initiative. Nonetheless, under the guise of fighting racism, and promoting fairness, inclusivity, and productivity, it achieves the same objective of division, resentment, and chaos. But instead of pitting people against each other on the basis of socioeconomic class warfare — the more traditional hallmark of Marxism — DEI does so through race, gender, and sexual identity. 
Also, part of why the charge of Marxism may at first sound like hyperbole is because the DEI stuff itself is so whacky and seemingly haphazard that ascribing to it the name of an economic theory seems to give it more purpose and organization than it deserves. After all, what could denouncing all white people as guilty oppressors and putting tampons in men’s rooms possibly have in common? However, those people need to remember, as Christopher Rufo points out in his excellent work <a href="https://manhattan.institute/book/americas-cultural-revolution-how-the-radical-left-conquered-everything" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“America’s Cultural Revolution,”</a> the first objective of Marxism is revolution, and the key drivers for that are segmentation, demonization, resentment, and chaos. It has been working.
As former <a href="https://starrs.us/the-more-diversity-officers-and-dei-training-race-relations-get-worse/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Army Captain Kendall Qualls</a> has observed, per Gallup and Southern Economic Journal, in 2003, nearly 70% of black and white Americans rated race relations either good or very good, which was one of the highest ratings in its tracking history. Since then, as the number of DEI officers in America’s institutions has soared, that percentage has plummeted by more than 30 points. From our <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/27/opinion/christopher-rufo-diversity-desantis-florida-university.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">schools</a>, to the practice of <a href="https://www.thefp.com/p/how-americas-obsession-with-dei-is" target="_blank" rel="noopener">medicine</a> and other <a href="https://www.thefp.com/p/how-dei-is-supplanting-truth-as-the" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sciences</a>, to <a href="https://armedforces.press/two-dei-contradictions-exposed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">politics</a>, to the <a href="https://time.com/6998539/trump-shooting-republicans-blame-dei-secret-service-women/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Secret Service</a>, and <a href="https://www.newsnationnow.com/race-in-america/dei-doesnt-work-study-of-studies/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">private sector corporations</a>, DEI has been an <a href="https://hbr.org/2022/12/the-failure-of-the-dei-industrial-complex" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unmitigated disaster</a>.
Aside from these institutions there is one other critical organization with a much smaller margin of error in which DEI has been deeply imbedded – our military. If there is one domain in which a country needs meritocracy, excellence, unity, and esprit de corps to reign supreme, it is with its war-fighting effectiveness.
In 2011, the Military Leadership Diversity Commission (MLDC) established a new paradigm. The MLDC’s <a href="https://archive.org/details/DTIC_ADA539297" target="_blank" rel="noopener">162-page Final Report</a>, titled “From Representation to Inclusion: Diversity Leadership for the 21st Century,” shifted priorities away from meritocracy and non-discrimination, moving instead toward “diversity” and “equity” as paramount goals. 
The impact has been swift and devastating. Consider just a sampling of what that has helped produce:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.heritage.org/military" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Heritage Foundation</a> – one of the only comprehensive, non-governmental assessments of our military readiness – for the first time provided an overall rating for 2024 of “weak,” down from “marginal” in 2023.</li>
<li>The military overall is facing the largest recruiting crisis in over half a century – short by some <a href="https://americanmilitarynews.com/2023/12/us-military-41000-troops-short-of-recruitment-goal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">41,000 personnel</a>.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.heritage.org/defense/report/report-the-national-independent-panel-military-service-and-readiness">The National Independent Panel on Military Service and Readiness</a> concluded that the human elements of training, discipline, cohesion, confidence, and morale critical to fighting and winning wars are under severe duress due to a prioritization of a political agenda that distracts from the war-fighting mission and diminishes trust in military leadership.</li>
<li>In all the services today, biological men are allowed to <a href="https://popularmilitary.com/armys-new-guidelines-for-transgender-showering-urinalysis-tests-are-leaked/">berth and shower</a> with women.</li>
<li>With some <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/defense/599459-army-approves-reduced-physical-fitness-standards-for-women-older-soldiers/">44% of women</a> failing the Army Combat Fitness Test, the Army has reduced the standards for the test to accommodate more women and older soldiers.</li>
<li>DoD data show that some <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2023/10/13/nearly-70-of-active-service-members-are-overweight-report-finds/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">70% of active duty service members</a> are overweight and that obesity rates have doubled in the last ten years. </li>
<li>The Navy has celebrated “Pride” for 12 consecutive years, and this past year used a <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/03/us-navy-appointed-active-duty-drag-queen-as-ambassador/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">drag queen</a> in its recruiting. </li>
<li>Per the <a href="https://www.reaganfoundation.org/media/359970/2022-survey-summary.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reagan Institute</a>, in just five years, the percentage of Americans saying they had trust and confidence in our military plummeted from 70% to 45% – the first time ever that a minority of the country expressed a great deal of trust and confidence in the military. </li>
<li>In 2018, 70% of Americans said they would recommend joining the military to family or friends. Just five years later in 2023, that number had <a href="https://www.military.com/daily-news/2023/11/30/most-would-encourage-military-service-confidence-armed-forces-remains-low-survey-finds.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">plummeted to 51%</a>. </li>
</ul>
In collecting feedback from military personnel and their families <a href="https://starrs.us/what-people-are-saying/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">STARRS</a> recently received this comment from a Marine father: “My son, who wanted to be a Marine his entire youth, left after 5 years, disgusted with the new &#8216;woke&#8217; Marines.”
Another service member said, “After 20 years of commissioned service, I tell folks all the time – no matter how woke you think the armed forces are, it is much worse.” 
Wars happen when aggressive adversaries assess, rightly or wrongly, that their opponent is weak enough to be defeated. How do America’s adversaries assess its military readiness today? Distressingly, it is likely that they see it as far lower than they did a mere decade or so ago.
Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, and Stanford Professor and historian <a href="https://starrs.us/the-dei-ruse-is-imploding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Victor Davis Hanson</a> says this of DEI: 
<blockquote>“In the end, DEI will implode because of its many contradictions: it is racist to the core; it is illegal and violates court decisions and the Constitution; it destroys meritocracy; and it is utterly incoherent in adjudicating who and who not deserve racial preferences.”</blockquote>
In ancient times, rigorous athletic competition was considered preparation for war and therefore critical to the survival of a society. In fact, Greek law required physical exercise of both men and women. Athletic competition or sport is perhaps the one stage in our current culture that has remained resistant to the DEI scourge. And yet, how ironic that, while Americans are opposed to removing meritocracy from sports – an enterprise that has historically symbolized combat readiness – they have been willing to throw it under the bus in the realm of actual combat readiness, our military.
The pages of history are filled with failed nations and cultures that made fatal errors in estimating and addressing their war-fighting readiness. We are currently on such a path with America’s military. We need to eradicate DEI policies and practices from the institution that stands between totalitarianism, communism, terrorist extremists and our free republic – our military.
* * *
Dr. Greg Salsbury is former president of Western Colorado University, author of the 2006 award winning book &#8220;But What If I Live?&#8221; which predicted the 2008 meltdown, and the follow up book &#8220;Retirementology – Rethinking the American Dream in a New Economy,&#8221; which topped Amazon’s “personal finance” category.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Navy cadets marching

Cigarettes, DEI, And Our Military

Cigarettes

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Marines

Marxism

Opinion

Readers Pass

U.S. Army

U.S. Military

U.S. Navy

The following is an edited transcript of an interview between Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley and Gold Star father Steve Nikoui whose son was killed during the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Morning Wire</a>.
* * *
JOHN: We are joined now by Gold Star father Steve Nikoui. Steve, thank you for joining us. Today is obviously a sad day for you. This is an anniversary that the Biden administration would like to not remember. President Trump went to Arlington National Cemetery today to honor the 13 soldiers – one of them, your son, Kareem – who were killed at Abbey Gate. How do you feel about the fact that that ceremony took place and that President Trump was there? 
STEVE: Yeah, thank you. The fact that it took place in and of itself was a miracle because that is the only time that any president — or prior president or anybody high up in the executive branch — that&#8217;s ever paid any respects to our kids. So by him going there, it means a lot, because he&#8217;s the first one that&#8217;s done it in the three years. And for it to be President Trump, that&#8217;s even bigger because he&#8217;s been an advocate for us and he&#8217;s been there for us since we started going to Washington and in June of last year. Everything that&#8217;s come out of Afghanistan is because of the Gold Star parents who press members of Congress. Darrell Issa, Chairman McCaul, letting them know what they didn&#8217;t know, what they didn&#8217;t hear in the public, what they wouldn&#8217;t hear from anyone else. And they would hear our stories, which are the truth, and they&#8217;d be like, “You are crazy, I can&#8217;t believe this.” And that&#8217;s what led to all of these investigations. So, since August last year, President Trump, right after we spoke at Congress on the 29th, he invited us up to Bedminster and he said he solidified his commitment to helping us and we&#8217;ve been to several rallies. We&#8217;ve had a few roundtables talking about this, and he&#8217;s been our champion the whole way. 
JOHN: You famously were arrested at the State of the Union earlier this year for calling out, “Remember Abbey Gate.” You were arrested at that moment. The D.C. AG decided to not pursue charges, thankfully. Have you had any further response from the White House – any more transparency offered since that moment?
STEVE: No. No. And what I said at, at there was, I said, “Do you remember Abbey Gate? And then I said, “United States Marines Corps.” And then I said my son&#8217;s name, which was Kareem M. Nikoui. And then I said “2nd Battalion, 1st Marine,” which was his unit. And no, I had not gotten – they wouldn&#8217;t want to talk to me. They didn&#8217;t reach out to me. The Sergeant of Arms knew I was a Gold Star father from Afghanistan, saw me when I was pulled out of row 7 in the hallway, saw me there, after they took me down in the basement. He followed me down, and basically gave, as I recall, a thumbs down to the Capitol Police, meaning “arrest him.” So he fully knew who I was, and intentionally and deliberately arrested me. And their premise was that I resisted arrest and if you&#8217;re arrested, they either paper it or they don&#8217;t paper it. Alright, and if they don&#8217;t paper it, that means that they&#8217;re not going to press charges. I didn&#8217;t find out I wasn&#8217;t papered until the day of my court. I called up for a Zoom call to the courthouse in Washington, D. C., and waited to get my name, kept waiting, and finally said, “Alright, these names are not going to be papered,” and my name was called. So not only they didn&#8217;t want to press charges, but they made sure that sting, that hurt lasted and impacted as much as it could. They arrested me – the president could&#8217;ve brought me in a back room, you know, said, “Hey, what are your grievances, what&#8217;s going on?” Instead, they arrest me. And they couldn&#8217;t have arrested me because they had no grounds, because they said I was resisting arrest, but when you look at the videos, I walked to them. I had never had contact with them before. So they intentionally did that just to hurt me as much as they could. And then to add insult to injury, they had no intentions on ever papering it, but waited the whole three weeks until my court case came up for them to let me know that it wasn&#8217;t going to be papered. 
JOHN: Now, President Biden infamously said that no troops had died under his watch during the presidential debate that ended up being the nail on the coffin of his attempt at a second term. What was your response to those comments from Biden? 
STEVE: You know what? I&#8217;m glad he said that because, just as you said, that was a nail in the coffin that ended his second presidential term. And it wasn&#8217;t anything surprising – that&#8217;s what we&#8217;ve heard and that&#8217;s what we&#8217;ve dealt with for the last three years. So for me, that was like every day, but to the rest of America, for them to finally see what we had been talking about and letting people know what has been going on for America to see that was huge because finally they&#8217;re like, all right, they&#8217;re right. He does deny their sacrifice and their service, and once again he was able to honor his son there. So I don&#8217;t know if he uses his platform just to honor Beau, who died while he was a lawyer wearing a suit and tie every day, as opposed to my son, who was a combat ready Marine, ready to fight, who was going through SIV applicants in handling people that weren&#8217;t able to cross the line and take them back over. So that was the way it is. 
JOHN: Now, President Biden did just tweet out the names of the Fallen Soldiers from Abbey Gate. What&#8217;s your response to that? Does that help at all? How does that make you feel? 
STEVE: Look, it does help. I&#8217;m not gonna sit here and ridicule him. He finally did it. I&#8217;m getting goosebumps and I&#8217;m glad he did it and he did the right thing. If that&#8217;s what he did, then even more so we won, right? Because that&#8217;s all I wanted at the State of the Union – for my kid&#8217;s name to be said there. It didn&#8217;t matter if it was him or whoever. My kid&#8217;s name was said, and for him to finally, after three years, to say my son&#8217;s name, that&#8217;s a victory for me. I&#8217;m not gonna downplay it or say it&#8217;s too much, too little, too late. He did it, and I appreciate that, but I wish he would have done it on his first State of the Union. I wish he would have done it the very first night that this happened, and then the course of history would have changed – I mean, we wouldn&#8217;t be having this conversation right now. 
JOHN: Kamala Harris is now the Democratic presidential nominee. Do you feel any more confident that she might show more respect for or appreciation of the military than President Biden?
STEVE: Oh, absolutely not. She won&#8217;t show any respect for the military because she hasn&#8217;t done anything. She hasn&#8217;t shown it yet. Those aren&#8217;t in her interest. There&#8217;s the same person who, a couple months after, I remember she was busing in child actors, and setting up what looked like kids that had won their way to go to the White House to speak with the vice president, which also was all just staged. They bussed in child actors and all the questions that they had were not organic questions from young kids that had won a way to go to the White House and talk to the vice president. It was all staged and scripted. And that&#8217;s what they do. I don&#8217;t even know if she&#8217;s in control of anything or if she&#8217;s just a puppet. But she doesn&#8217;t do any interviews, so that tells us that she doesn&#8217;t have any real policy, she doesn&#8217;t discuss any policy. It&#8217;s just a lot of showboating and salesmanship on her speeches and everything. So no, I think it would even be worse. I think whoever was driving the Biden administration is definitely going to be driving the Kamala Harris administration – and I think it would be way worse.
JOHN: One of the lines of attack from Democrats against President Trump is that he supposedly disrespected the military at one point. What have you seen from him in terms of his approach to people who have served and are currently serving?
STEVE: I&#8217;ve heard these things, but you know what, I take it with a grain of salt because I also heard about Russiagate and I heard about the things that happened in his impeachment, and from my experience – being a Gold Star father – none of that matters. Donald J. Trump was the only one who last August 30th took us to Bedminster – the President of the United States, which is the highest government official. He was the only one that ever honored us and listened to us and let us talk about our kids individually with him, and promised, “I&#8217;m gonna be here for you when I get in the White House. We&#8217;re gonna honor him the right way, we&#8217;re gonna honor him at the White House.” And it wasn&#8217;t something that he said. And now remember, last August, he was not a popular guy. This was literally like three days after he got arrested. His mugshot that came out. The media didn&#8217;t even think that he was going to be a challenge to running in 2024 at that point. They thought that all these court cases and jail and the mugshot would do him in. But he was there for us, and he&#8217;s like, “Hey, when I get back in the White House, I&#8217;m going to honor your kids at the White House.” He says, “Hey, you know, here, Bedminster is beautiful and I could take you to Mar-a-Lago, but this needs to be done in the White House.” And that was awesome. So he invited us for the last year. “Any rallies that you want to go to, just let us know. We&#8217;ll fly you there.” It&#8217;s unimaginable to have a president be so invested in the people like that. It&#8217;s unimaginable. I saw him, I talked to him and met with him, a week before he got shot in Pennsylvania, at Temple University. He did a rally out there, invited us out there. I had a picture of my son. He signed it, I asked him to sign it. It was one week before he had that – and, man, just unwavering, everything he told us a year earlier, the same thing: “I&#8217;m here for you. It&#8217;s a travesty what happened. Let&#8217;s just keep the fight.” So, yeah, that hasn&#8217;t been my experience at all.
JOHN: One more question: What would you like people to think about, to remember on this infamous anniversary of the withdrawal from Afghanistan and Abbey Gate?
STEVE: You know, I want people to remember that our lifestyle is not free. Policemen and firemen are great, but they protect us from each other. Our military protects us from the world, and we wouldn&#8217;t be able to have anything that we have if it wasn&#8217;t for our military. And we&#8217;re at the lowest enlistment rate that we&#8217;ve ever been at – and that&#8217;s because of what happened in Afghanistan, and what happened in the rest of the world from Afghanistan, like Ukraine and, and, and Israel, and what&#8217;s going on with Hezbollah. This all stems from the weakness of our withdrawal from Afghanistan. We showed weakness, the world takes over, and profits off that weakness. So that&#8217;s the first thing, I want them to know that. Look, this is not a Republican or a Democrat issue. This is an American issue, and we need enlisted soldiers, one. And then, two, to think about the things that these kids see and to think about the 22 service members that commit suicide every day. A lot of kids saw horrible things over there at Abbey Gate. And they&#8217;re alive, and a lot of them are committing suicide because they can&#8217;t reconcile what they&#8217;ve seen and what they&#8217;ve witnessed and then come back over here into society and try to fit in. So I think probably the most important thing is the enlistment numbers and the suicide numbers. Somehow we&#8217;ve got to work through these two.
JOHN: Thank you for being such a powerful, passionate voice on this. And thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us.
STEVE: Oh, thank you, man. I appreciate you.
* * *

Donald Trump Attends Wreath Laying Ceremony At Arlington National Cemetery

Three Years Later: Gold Star Father Reflects On Afghanistan Debacle, Says Kamala Would Be ‘Way Worse.’

Three Years Later: Gold Star Father Reflects On Afghanistan Debacle, Says Kamala Would Be 'Way Worse.'

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Retired Lt. General H.R. McMaster, who served as the first national security adviser under former President Donald Trump, said he was concerned about the safety of U.S. forces in the Middle East because the Biden-Harris administration was unwilling to allow them to defend themselves adequately against Iranian aggression.
McMaster made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217;s &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with host Margaret Brennan when asked about the 40,000 troops that the U.S. currently has in the Middle East and whether there was a risk of miscalculation in the region that could cause &#8220;blowback to those U.S. forces.&#8221;
&#8220;What I&#8217;m concerned about is that those forces will be constrained in what they&#8217;re able to do in response,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I think what we have seen is a reluctance to act like we know what the return address is for this violence. And, of course, the return address is Iran.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amiracist.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1724211156439000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2-L2DitSaIUj5wz8v0bgxx">Tickets for “Am I Racist?” are on sale NOW! Buy here for a theater near you.</a>
McMaster noted that Iran &#8220;is pursuing a strategy in which it is willing to expend every Arab life, every Palestinian life, every Lebanese life, in pursuit of its objective of destroying Israel.&#8221;
&#8220;Meanwhile, Iran is continuing to funnel weapons not only into Southern Lebanon, but to essentially a proxy army in Syria, into the West Bank,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;At the same time, Iran is racing to produce a nuclear device. So I think what we have to recognize is this horrible situation in the region that&#8217;s been going on for 40 years, right?&#8221;
He explained that the notion that Israel needs to de-escalate the situation was nonsense, considering how long they have been dealing with the current situation in the region.
<a href="http://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.amiracist.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1724211156439000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2xQ8bdTcpfdrPBAzczIuck">WATCH THE TRAILER FOR ‘AM I RACIST?’ — A MATT WALSH COMEDY ON DEI</a>
&#8220;And I think that the narrative that you constantly hear about turning down the temperature, escalation management, the reluctance really to confront Iran directly and impose costs on Iran, that actually gives Iran license to escalate on their own terms with impunity,&#8221; he said.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Former National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster (Ret.) on the strikes overnight between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group amid fears of a widening conflict in the Middle East: <a href="https://t.co/9zQ4c8fyGc">pic.twitter.com/9zQ4c8fyGc</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1827724095649108416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2024</a></blockquote>

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Ex-Trump Official Explains How Middle East Is More Dangerous For U.S. Troops Under Biden-Harris

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Iran

Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster

Middle East

Politics

As a congressman, Democratic vice presidential candidate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/tim-walz" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tim Walz</a> voted against a bill meant to streamline and improve medical treatment for military veterans. 
In 2018, Walz was one of 70 Democrats in the House who <a href="https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2018189" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted against</a> the “VA MISSION Act,&#8221; which gives veterans the option to get healthcare from a nearby provider and bill the VA if their nearest VA provider was more than 30 minutes away. The law also ensures veterans would be able to get an appointment for primary care, mental health care, and non-institutional extended care services within 20 days of reaching out to the VA.
Despite Walz and other Democrats opposition, the bill passed 347-70 in the House and 92-5 in the Senate. 
&#8220;This is truly a historic moment, a historic time for our country,” former President Donald Trump said as he <a href="https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/06/06/trump-signs-55-billion-bill-replace-va-choice-program.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> the legislation in June 2018. &#8220;We&#8217;re allowing our veterans to get access to the best medical care available, whether it&#8217;s at the VA or at a private provider.&#8221;
Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) told The Daily Wire on Wednesday that the legislation was something that “the veterans’ community had been asking for for decades” and that Trump and a Republican-led Congress got it passed.
“Essentially if the VA can’t give you the service you need, the wait lines are too long or you have to drive too far, you can just go to your doctor and they’ll bill it to the VA. It’s common sense legislation and it&#8217;s one of the most popular and consequential pieces that we’ve had and Walz voted against it.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
“He&#8217;s going to be at the table of every national security council. Probably one of—if not the only one—with any military experience at all, and he exaggerated what he did. That&#8217;s disqualifying in my view.”<a href="https://twitter.com/michaelgwaltz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@michaelgwaltz</a> tells Daily Wire reporter <a href="https://twitter.com/BrentScher?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BrentScher</a> why he was one of 50… <a href="https://t.co/okxx3SmLOX">pic.twitter.com/okxx3SmLOX</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1826376700483305545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 21, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Waltz said that Tim Walz should be “called to task” for the vote. 
“I would like to think that’s something he regrets,” Waltz said. “He would be eliminating choice from our veterans community and putting all the eggs back in that bureaucracy of the VA that often doesn’t get the job done for our vets.”
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Walz has come under fire for making misleading claims about his service in the National Guard, specifically about misrepresentations about him serving in combat zones. 
On Wednesday, 50 Republican veterans in Congress <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/50-republican-vets-in-congress-sign-letter-condemning-walz-for-lying-about-his-military-service" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sent</a> a letter to Walz accusing him of diminishing the service records of other veterans
“You have stated that you are ‘damn proud’ of your service, and like any American veteran, you should be,” they stated. “But there is no honor in lying about the nature of your service. Repeatedly claiming to be a ‘Retired Command Sergeant Major’ when you did not complete the requirements was not honorable,&#8221; the letter states.
&#8220;Nor was it honorable to claim to carry weapons ‘in war’ when you had not served in war, and abandoning the men and women under your leadership just as they were getting ready to deploy was certainly not honorable either.”

TOPSHOT-US-VOTE-POLITICS-DEMOCRATIC-CONVENTION

Walz Voted Against Trump-Backed Bill That Gave Veterans More Health Care Options

2024 Election

Health Care

Tim Walz

U.S. Politics

Veterans Affairs (VA)

Former President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> promised at a rally in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/north-carolina" target="_blank" rel="noopener">North Carolina</a> on Wednesday to remove all the military commanders who have pushed “insulting” woke policies under the Biden-Harris administration.
Trump made the comments during a rally at the North Carolina Aviation Museum and Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina. The rally was his first outdoor event since he was nearly assassinated last month when he was struck by a bullet while speaking at a campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Speaking from behind bulletproof glass, Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@TeamTrump/posts/113001588844403689" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> that he would rid the military of wokeness if elected president, warning that electing Vice President Kamala Harris would continue the radicalization of the military.
&#8220;Under ‘Comrade Kamala,’ our military has been abused for radical social experiments,” he said. “On day one, I will get Critical Race Theory and transgender insanity the hell out of our U.S. Armed Forces. We’re taking it out. Our warriors should be focused on defeating America’s enemies, not figuring out their genders.&#8221;
“Marxist ideologies have no place in combat,” he said. “We want them to know their gender when they go in. You have no idea the disruption that that has caused and the fake news refuses to report it.”
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Previous <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woke-leadership-is-gutting-u-s-military-through-dei-trans-policies-gop-report-says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports</a> from House Republicans have indicated how the U.S. Military has been weakened through the adoption of DEI policies and LGBT initiatives. For example, the U.S. Special Forces put out a report claiming that “diversity and inclusion are operational imperatives.”
Trump said those policies would stop if he was elected in November.
“If you want to have a sex change or a social justice seminar, then you can do it somewhere else, but you’re not going to do it in the Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Space Force, or the United States Marines,” he said. “The military brass that lead these absurd and insulting initiatives will likewise be removed. They will no longer be in command. They’re going to be gone, gone so fast.”
The former president also said that he would demand the resignations on inauguration day of those involved in Biden’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that led to billions of dollars in American military equipment being left with the Taliban and the death of 13 American troops in a terror attack.
“The voters will hold Kamala and Joe accountable this November,” he <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@TeamTrump/posts/113001577865082065" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “I will ask for the resignations of every single senior military official who touched the Afghanistan disaster. I want their resignations immediately.”
North Carolina, which Trump won in both 2016 and 2020, is seen as one of the key battleground states for 2024.

US-VOTE-POLITICS-TRUMP-VANCE

‘Gone So Fast’: Trump Promises To Remove Military Commanders Who Have Pushed ‘Insulting’ Woke Initiatives

Elections

North Carolina

Wokeness

On Wednesday, Congressman Brian Mast (R-FL), who lost both legs when he served in Afghanistan as a U.S. Army explosive ordnance disposal technician in 2010, led a group of 50 Republican veterans in Congress to <a href="https://x.com/BrianMastFL/status/1826248921427189951">endorse a letter</a> condemning Minnesota Democratic Governor Tim Walz’s lies about his military service.
“The Office of the Vice President is a position that requires the trust of the American people and a solemn commitment to duty on behalf of the United States of America,” the letter began. “As veterans who have served our nation, we feel compelled to address your egregious misrepresentations and urge you to come clean to the American people.”
“You have stated that you are ‘damn proud’ of your service, and like any American veteran, you should be,” they stated. “But there is no honor in lying about the nature of your service. Repeatedly claiming to be a ‘Retired Command Sergeant Major’ when you did not complete the requirements was not honorable. Nor was it honorable to claim to carry weapons ‘in war’ when you had not served in war, and abandoning the men and women under your leadership just as they were getting ready to deploy was certainly not honorable either.”
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“To be blunt, when you falsely claim military service that did not happen and abandon your post, you diminish the real sacrifices made by veterans who did serve in combat,” they charged. “Military service is not merely a job or a uniform. Those who serve in the Armed Forces endure rigorous training, face perilous situations, and make sacrifices that most civilians can’t comprehend. The honor of wearing the uniform is earned through dedication, bravery, and an unwavering sense of duty. You have displayed none of these characteristics as you have lied your way through a political career launched on the foundation of a title you did not earn and combat deployments you did not take part in.”
“In short, our grave concern stems from the fact that the office of the Vice President is one heartbeat away from becoming the Commander-In-Chief. You’ve already demonstrated your unwillingness to lead in time of war and a lack of honor through your blatant misrepresentations exploiting and co-opting the experiences of America’s combat veterans for personal gain,” they declared.
“As a result, America’s veterans and servicemembers are rightfully concerned about what would happen to them should you ascend to the Presidency. When America asked you to lead your troops into War, you turned your back on your troops. You have violated the trust of our brothers and sisters in arms. Their blood, sweat, and sacrifice are the only reason our nation is able to exist. Until you admit you lied to them, there is no way you can be trusted to serve as Vice President.” they concluded.
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Other signatories included:
Joni Ernst, U.S. Senator (IA); Lieutenant Colonel &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
Roger Marshall, U.S. Senator (KS); Captain &#8211; U.S. Army Reserve (Ret.)
Rick Scott, U.S. Senator (FL); Petty Officer Third Class &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Roger Wicker, U.S. Senator (MS); Lieutenant Colonel &#8211; U.S. Air Force Reserve (Ret.)
Brian Babin, U.S. Representative (TX-36); Captain &#8211; U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Don Bacon, U.S. Representative (NE-02); Brigadier General &#8211; U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Jim Baird, U.S. Representative (IN-04); First Lieutenant &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Jim Banks, U.S. Representative (IN-03); Lieutenant &#8211; U.S. Navy Reserve (Ret.)
Jack Bergman, U.S. Representative (MI-01); Lieutenant General &#8211; U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (Ret.)
Mike Bost, U.S. Representative (IL-12); Corporal &#8211; U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)
Mike Carey, U.S. Representative (OH-15); U.S. Army Reserve (Ret.)
Eli Crane, U.S. Representative (AZ-02); Petty Officer First Class &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Warren Davidson, U.S. Representative (OH-08); Captain &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Neal Dunn, U.S. Representative (FL-02); Major &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Jake Ellzey, U.S. Representative (TX-06); Commander &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Pat Fallon, U.S. Representative (TX-04); Captain &#8211; U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Scott Fitzgerald, U.S. Representative (WI-05); Lieutenant Colonel &#8211; U.S. Army Reserve (Ret.)
Scott Franklin, U.S. Representative (FL-18); Commander &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Tony Gonzales, U.S. Representative (TX-23), Master Chief Petty Officer &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Mark Green, U.S. Representative (TN-07); Major &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Brett Guthrie, U.S. Representative (KY-02); First Lieutenant &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Clay Higgins, U.S. Representative (LA-03); Staff Sergeant &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
Wesley Hunt, U.S. Representative (TX-38); Captain &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Darrell Issa, U.S. Representative (CA-48); Captain &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Ronny Jackson, U.S. Representative (TX-13); Rear Admiral &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Jen Kiggans, U.S. Representative (VA-02); U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Nick LaLota, U.S. Representative (NY-01); Lieutenant &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Greg Lopez, U.S. Representative (CO-04); U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Barry Loudermilk, U.S. Representative (GA-11); Staff Sergeant &#8211; U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Anna Paulina Luna, U.S. Representative (FL-13); Senior Airman &#8211; U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Rich McCormick, U.S. Representative (GA-06); Commander &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Max Miller, U.S. Representative (OH-07); Corporal &#8211; U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (Ret.)
Mariannette Miller-Meeks, U.S. Representative (IA-01); Lieutenant Colonel &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Cory Mills, U.S. Representative (FL-07); Sergeant &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Barry Moore, U.S. Representative (AL-02); Staff Sergeant &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
Troy Nehls, U.S. Representative (TX-22); Major &#8211; U.S. Army Reserve (Ret.)
Zach Nunn, U.S. Representative (IA-03); Colonel &#8211; U.S. Air Force Reserve
Scott Perry, U.S. Representative (PA-10); Brigadier General &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
August Pfluger, U.S. Representative (TX-11); Colonel &#8211; U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Guy Reschenthaler, U.S. Representative (PA-14); Lieutenant &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Hal Rogers, U.S. Representative (KY-05); Staff Sergeant &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
Keith Self, U.S. Representative (TX-03); Lieutenant Colonel &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
Gregory Steube, U.S. Representative (FL-17); Captain &#8211; U.S. Army (Ret.)
William Timmons, U.S. Representative (SC-04); Captain &#8211; Air National Guard
Derrick Van Orden, U.S. Representative (WI-03); Senior Chief Petty Officer &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Michael Waltz, U.S. Representative (FL-06); Colonel &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
Brandon Williams, U.S. Representative (NY-22); Lieutenant &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Joe Wilson, U.S. Representative (SC-02); Colonel &#8211; Army National Guard (Ret.)
Ryan Zinke, U.S. Representative (MT-01); Commander &#8211; U.S. Navy (Ret.)

The 2024 Republican National Convention

50 Republican Vets In Congress Sign Letter Condemning Walz For ‘Lying’ About His Military Service

Brian Mast

Congress

Republicans

Veterans

FRANCE-WWII-LIBERATION-LANDING-PROVENCE

Operation Dragoon: The Forgotten Invasion Of World War II, The Champagne Campaign

Europe

France

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR)

Josef Stalin

Nazi Germany

Winston Churchill

World War II

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, now Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris’s running mate, issued his Congressional Challenge Coin falsely claiming he had the status of a command sergeant major when, in fact, he <a href="https://www.startribune.com/walzs-24-years-in-national-guard-get-renewed-scrutiny-from-gop-opponent-who-didnt-serve/600216280" target="_blank" rel="noopener">retired</a> as a master sergeant.
Some members of Congress have embraced a military tradition of minting custom coins. The Congressional Challenge Coins purport to include details about their lives and the districts they represent.
Evidence of the coin was first reported by the podcast <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVMkvv8PQhk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Angry Cops</a>; it was corroborated by Daily Wire reporter Bree A Dail On X.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Hi, <a href="https://twitter.com/Tim_Walz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Tim_Walz</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/KamalaHarris?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KamalaHarris</a>— Just wondering, did you also “misprint” your rank as Command Sergeant Major on your Congressional Challenge Coin?
cc: <a href="https://twitter.com/NBCNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBCNews</a> <a href="https://t.co/KIILqMgj9S">https://t.co/KIILqMgj9S</a> <a href="https://t.co/fkZrb4luHv">pic.twitter.com/fkZrb4luHv</a>
&mdash; Bree A Dail (@breeadail) <a href="https://twitter.com/breeadail/status/1822647461044768885?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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Retired Sergeant Major Jason Jaskula — who has run the <a href="https://www.kiamemorialmarch.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">KIA Memorial Roadmarch</a> to honor the memory of his fallen buddy, Staff Sergeant Christopher Dill, killed in during Operation Iraqi Freedom on April 4, 2005, in Diyala, Iraq — was asked by Angry Cops what he thought of  Walz’s Congressional Challenge Coin. He responded:
<blockquote>
I think it is unethical. He was a conditionally appointed sergeant major but never earned the rank and literally no one would understand that except for a few military members and/or sergeant majors. &#8230; It’s like a private and basic training that becomes the platoon leader, and he gets to wear sergeant’s stripes on his shoulders, but then he goes home and shows pictures of it and then people think that he’s a sergeant. &#8230; As an actual retired sergeant major it pisses me off and minimalizes what I actually did. Feel free to use the quote as well that I spoke to sergeant majors and they all call him — never mind.
</blockquote>
“Challenge coins serve as a symbol of membership, belonging, and camaraderie, forging a strong bond among those who possess them. Additionally, they are used to acknowledge an individual&#8217;s achievements, dedication, or exemplary service, and serve as a tangible reminder of the appreciation and respect of their peers and superiors,” Fork Union Military Academy <a href="https://www.forkunion.com/the-honor-and-tradition-of-challenge-coins/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">explains</a>.
Doug Julin — who oversaw Walz in the Minnesota National Guard as a more senior command sergeant in the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery — told CNN on Thursday that Walz went behind his back to retire after he learned that their unit would be deploying to Iraq.
“Receiving a challenge coin is a great honor, as it signifies that the recipient has played a special role, making a significant impact on their peers and the organization as a whole,” Fork Union Military Academy continues. “Today, challenge coins are used across all branches of the US military, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. They have become an integral part of military culture and tradition, with each unit creating their unique coins featuring their insignia, motto, or other elements that represent their identity and values. &#8230; Possessing a unit&#8217;s challenge coin indicated that an individual was a trusted member of the team and shared the same values, experiences, and goals as their comrades.”
RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tim-walz-repeatedly-misconstrued-his-military-service-here-are-the-examples">Tim Walz Repeatedly Misconstrued His Military Service. Here Are The Examples.</a>

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz

Walz Issued Congressional Challenge Coin That Misstated His Rank

Iraq

National Guard

Since 2018, there has been a large-scale controversy surrounding Tim Walz: his stolen valor.
Stolen valor has a long history in American politics, where people who run for high office exaggerate their military service. Many of the comrades whom they shivved become angry about it.
For example, John Kerry in 2004.
He exaggerated his heroism in Vietnam, which came back to haunt him. That was only after he had made his bones by returning from Vietnam and slandering his fellow soldiers as torturers and sickos who taped electrodes to genitals and tortured the Vietnamese people, among other such claims. He made his name doing that.
Then, he came around making statements such as, “I liked serving in Vietnam with all my brothers.”
And all the Vietnam vets reacted: “This jackass? This one?”
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) was also involved in a stolen valor controversy. He was a Democrat from Connecticut running for the Senate who said that he served in Vietnam.
He didn’t.
The long history of stolen valor continues. It turns out that Tim Walz is also a stolen valor guy, by all available evidence. He served in the National Guard for 24 years. But two separate claims about Walz also exist. One claim is that the minute he found out he was going to be deployed to Iraq, he quit. The minute that those rumors even began, he quit and then ran for Congress. So, a timeline is called into question.
And then, he apparently claimed for years and years that he&#8217;d been deployed to war zones, though he never was. Now, there&#8217;s nothing wrong with being in the military and not being deployed to a war zone. Plenty of members of the military were never deployed to a war zone, and we thank them for their heroic service.
There is a problem when you lie about it.
<h4><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2022-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h4>
In a 2007 <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvPtIEnNjqE">interview</a> that aired on C-Span, Walz stretched some definitions to imply very strongly that he was in a war zone: 
<blockquote>I spent 24 years in the National Guard, some of that full-time; I was an artilleryman. I deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. My battalion provided base security throughout the European theater from Turkey to England in the early stages of the war in Afghanistan. And that same battalion is now in Iraq at this time.</blockquote>
He was talking about how his battalion ended up in Iraq. He was not in Iraq. He was talking about how he provided support for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, stretching some definitions at the very least. Somehow, almost every article from 2007 to 2018 about him included the lie he was actually in Afghanistan or Iraq. There are many, many of these. He actually endorsed a book that claimed he was in Afghanistan.
And a lot of veterans are very, very angry about all of this.
And then there&#8217;s the question of the timeline because the claim from many of the members of his old battalion is that he quit on them the minute he found out they were going to Iraq. In 2018 after Walz first ran for governor, retired Command Sergeant Majors Thomas Behrends and Paul Herr wrote and posted <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=2192940227614940&amp;set=pcb.2192944367614526">a letter</a> on Facebook: 
<blockquote>On August 5th, 2004 he was photographed holding a sign at a protest outside a President Bush campaign rally in southern Minnesota.
On September 17th, 2004 he was conditionally promoted to Command Sergeant Major. The conditions had been outlined to him when he was counseled and he signed the Statement of Agreement and Certification. If the conditions are not met, the promotion is null and void, like it never happened.
In early 2005, a warning order was issued to the 1-125th Field Artillery Battalion, which included the position he was serving in, to prepare to be mobilized for active duty for a deployment to Iraq. Between the time the warning order was given and his &#8220;retirement&#8221;, he told the Brigade Command Sergeant Major not to worry, that he would be going on the mission. It appears that was a lie.
On May 16, 2005 he quit, betraying his country, leaving the 1-125th Field Artillery Battalion and its Soldiers hanging; without its senior Non-Commissioned Officer, as the battalion prepared for war. His excuse to other leaders was that he needed to retire in order to run for congress. Which is false, according to a Department of Defense Directive, he could have run and requested permission from the Secretary of Defense before entering active duty; as many reservists have. If he had retired normally and respectfully, you would think he would have ensured his retirement documents were correctly filled out and signed, and that he would have ensured he was reduced to Master Sergeant for dropping out of the academy. Instead he slithered out the door and waited for the paperwork …</blockquote>
They added: 
<blockquote>On September 10th, 2005 conditionally promoted Command Sergeant Major Walz was reduced to Master Sergeant. It took a while for the system to catch up to him as it was uncharted territory, literally no one quits in the position he was in, or drops out of the academy. Except him.
In November of 2005, while the battalion trained for war at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, it received an offer from retired Master Sergeant Walz. He offered to fund raise for the battalion&#8217;s bus trip home over Christmas that year. The same Soldiers he had abandoned just months before, trying to buy their votes.</blockquote>
On November 1st, 2006, Tom Hagen, Iraq War Veteran, wrote <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/walz-embellished-and-selectively-omitted-facts-about-his-military-career-retired-national-guardsmen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a letter</a> to the editor of the Winona Daily News about Walz, saying: 
<blockquote>But even more disturbing is the fact that Walz quickly retired after learning that his unit — southern Minnesota&#8217;s 1-125 FA Battalion — would be sent to Iraq. For Tim Walz to abandon his fellow soldiers and quit when they needed experienced leadership most is disheartening. It dishonors those brave Americans in his place.</blockquote>
This is a major scandal for Walz because when you exaggerate your military career, other veterans get angry.
* * *
<h4><a href="http://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH THE TRAILER FOR &#8216;AM I RACIST?&#8217; — A MATT WALSH COMEDY ON DEI</a></h4>

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz campaign in Wisconsin

Stolen Valor Walz

Ben Shapiro

Woman Who Stole Nomination Picks Man Who Stole Valor As Running Mate

Matt Walsh

Minnesota

Vice President

Battle of Saipan

The Battle Of Saipan, Part Four: Conquest And Aftermath

American History

History

Pacific Ocean

“The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot” on June 19, 1944, was the most <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-battle-of-saipan-part-two-the-great-marianas-turkey-shoot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lopsided aerial victory</a> of the Pacific War. In one day Japan’s 1st Mobile Fleet and land-based contingent lost over 300 aircraft and crew, rendering Japanese naval air power a shell of the fighting force that had so confidently sallied forth to meet the Americans and end the Saipan invasion. 
Admiral Ozawa, however, still commanded a formidable array of surface ships. And although U.S. submarines had sent two of his three prized fleet carriers to the bottom, he was still eager for a fight with the seven carriers and roughly 150 planes he had remaining, plus aircraft he mistakenly believed were still in some force on Guam, which was not the case. He’d planned on rendezvousing with his tankers, refueling, and hitting the Americans again in the morning.
But his opposing tactical commander, Admiral Mitscher, refused to just sit back and wait to be attacked again. He wanted to pursue and destroy the Japanese fleet. There was, however, a problem. The Americans weren’t sure where Ozawa’s ships even were. Throughout the day, U.S. scout planes scoured the vast emptiness of the Philippine Sea in a desperate search to locate the Japanese fleet.
It wasn’t until 3:15 in the afternoon, and after flying some 300 miles, that a scouting party from Enterprise flying Grumman Avenger torpedo planes spotted the unmistakable pagoda-like masts of the Japanese fleet and radioed their find to Task Force 58. 
<div id="attachment_773185" style="width: 435px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-773185" class="size-large wp-image-773185" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/NH-43430-KN-425x576.jpeg" alt="Grumman TBM &quot;Avenger&quot; Torpedo Planes fly in formation, circa 1942-1944. Halftoned photo, color-tinted. Copied from &quot;U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings,&quot; July 1945. Catalog #: NH 43430-KN. Naval History and Heritage Command" width="425" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/NH-43430-KN-425x576.jpeg 425w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/NH-43430-KN-221x300.jpeg 221w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/NH-43430-KN-768x1041.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/NH-43430-KN.jpeg 944w" sizes="(max-width: 425px) 100vw, 425px" />Grumman &#8220;Avenger&#8221; Torpedo Planes fly in formation, circa 1942-1944. Naval History and Heritage Command.</div>
Listeners aboard the cruiser Atago intercepted the Americans’ transmission and informed Ozawa. Realizing 1st Mobile Fleet had been spotted, the Japanese commander ceased the refueling operation and ordered the fleet to sail northwest at 24 knots, away from the Americans.
Due to delays in deciphering, the sighting didn’t reach Mitscher on board his flagship Lexington until 4:05 p.m. Now the physically frail but aggressive admiral faced an agonizing decision. The scouts’ report showed the Japanese fleet to be some 275 miles away. This was the very limit of his attack aircraft’s range. And to make matters worse, he had only four hours of daylight left to work with. This meant that he’d have to recover any potential strike in darkness, and few of his aircrew were trained in night operations. What should he do?
<div id="attachment_773193" style="width: 480px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-773193" class="size-large wp-image-773193" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236857-470x576.jpeg" alt="Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher. CTF 58.3 aboard USS LEXINGTON (CV-16) during The Battle of The Philippine Sea, 19 June 1944. Catalog #: 80-G-236857. National Archives. Naval History and Heritage Command." width="470" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236857-470x576.jpeg 470w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236857-245x300.jpeg 245w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236857-768x942.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236857.jpeg 1044w" sizes="(max-width: 470px) 100vw, 470px" />Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher aboard USS LEXINGTON (CV-16) during The Battle of The Philippine Sea, 19 June 1944. National Archives. Naval History and Heritage Command.</div>
After a few minutes of reflection, Mitscher concluded the Japanese carriers were just too tempting a target to let slip away. He ordered his staff to “Launch the first deckload as soon as possible. Get the carriers!”
When the aircrews who’d been anxiously waiting below decks all day received their orders, they knew what this meant for them; they resigned themselves to flying a dangerous mission at the maximum range, followed by possibly having to ditch in the pitch blackness of the Philippine Sea’s shark-infested waters when their tanks ran dry. Even if they did make it back, how would they find their carriers observing blackout protocol in what was a moonless night on the open ocean? Without hesitation they scrambled to their waiting aircraft across eleven carriers and sped down the flight decks, heading west, unsure what the enemy warships, and a setting sun, had in store for them.
<div id="attachment_773173" style="width: 721px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-773173" class="size-large wp-image-773173" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/unnamed-711x576.jpg" alt="Battle of the Philippine Sea, June 1944. Lieutenant Ronald P. Rip Gift relaxes with other pilots in a ready room on board USS Monterey (CVL-26), after landing on her at night following strikes on the Japanese fleet, 20 June 1944. Note admonition Get the Carriers on chalk board in the background. Photographed by Lieutenant Victor Jorgensen, USNR. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Catalog #: 80-G-474791" width="711" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/unnamed-711x576.jpg 711w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/unnamed-300x243.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/unnamed-768x622.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/unnamed.jpg 1440w" sizes="(max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px" />Photographed by Lieutenant Victor Jorgensen, USNR. Official U.S. Navy Photo. National Archives.</div>
Navy Cross recipient, Lt. Harold Buell, piloting a Curtiss Helldiver bomber, recalled:
<blockquote>I have always thought that the most amazing thing about this mission was that it ever took place at all. Almost all the pilots leaving the carriers…knew they were going beyond normal gas range to hit the enemy. If the Japanese had launched such a strike against our fleet we would dub it a suicide mission. Yet, almost to a man, we went on the mission as ordered.</blockquote>
Suicidal or not, a strike package of 240 planes headed for the enemy flotilla.
<div id="attachment_773183" style="width: 475px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-773183" class="size-large wp-image-773183" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-238021-465x576.jpeg" alt="Battle of The Philippine Sea, June 1944. TBFs and SB2Cs enroute to attack the enemy. Photograph released 30 June with other Philippine Sea views. Catalog #: 80-G-238021. National Archives. Naval History and Heritage Command." width="465" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-238021-465x576.jpeg 465w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-238021-242x300.jpeg 242w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-238021-768x952.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-238021.jpeg 1033w" sizes="(max-width: 465px) 100vw, 465px" />Battle of The Philippine Sea, June 1944. TBFs and SB2Cs enroute to attack the enemy. National Archives. Naval History and Heritage Command.</div>
After a two-hour flight, the cloud of American aircraft caught up with Ozawa’s fleet. 95 Hellcats ripped through the Japanese combat air patrol to clear the way for the dive bombers and torpedo planes. In the ensuing dogfight, 65 more of Osawa’s aircraft were sent flaming into the sea. With the skies cleared of enemy fighters, the attack aircraft dispersed to hit as many of the seven aircraft carriers at the center of the Japanese strike force as they could. 
The anti-aircraft was ferocious, however, and several U.S. planes were blown out of the sky. Buell likened it to “diving into an Iowa plains hailstorm.” While dive bombers pitched over from 10,000 feet and screamed down to drop their payloads, torpedo planes skimmed the waves, frothing with enemy shells and bullets, to release their fish and send them towards their intended targets.
In the ensuing attack, the Americans mortally wounded two oilers and the fleet carrier Hiyō, while rocking three other light carriers with non-fatal bomb and torpedo hits. It had not been the knock-out blow that Mitscher had envisioned. Still, the losses inflicted by the determined U.S. air strike along with the mauling his own air wing had suffered over the last two days convinced Ozawa to abandon any further operations to disrupt the landings on Saipan.
But for the American fliers winging away to the east and darkness, and many planes battle damaged, their struggle was just beginning. They had some 300 miles between them and their own carriers, and not a drop of fuel to spare. Many planes were also battle damaged, making their journey home even more perilous. Not to mention several men were painfully wounded. Would they make it back to their carriers? Or would hundreds of Task Force 58’s aircraft and, more important, their highly trained and brave crews, run out of gas and be compelled to ditch and be swallowed up in the unforgiving vastness of the Pacific?
<div id="attachment_773217" style="width: 722px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-773217" class="wp-image-773217 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236876-712x576.jpeg" alt="Battle of The Philippine Sea, June 1944. Japanese plane crashes during a night attack on TG 58.3, 19 June 1944. Seen from USS LEXINGTON (CV-16). Catalog #: 80-G-236876. National Archives. Naval History and Heritage Command." width="712" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236876-712x576.jpeg 712w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236876-300x243.jpeg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236876-768x622.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/80-G-236876.jpeg 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 712px) 100vw, 712px" />Battle of The Philippine Sea, June 1944. Japanese plane crashes during a night attack on TG 58.3, 19 June 1944. Seen from USS LEXINGTON (CV-16). National Archives. Naval History and Heritage Command.</div>
They headed east into what was soon pitch darkness, without even moonlight to guide pilots relying on navigation alone to get them home. It wasn’t long before scores of U.S. planes with empty tanks began belly-landing into the sea. In the eerie night time the airwaves filled with panicked voices breaking radio silence to announce they were out of fuel and ditching into the forbidding black waters of the Pacific.
Another Navy Cross recipient, LCDR Ralph Weymouth, while flying an SBD Dauntless dive-bomber off the Lexington, remembered:
<blockquote>At one time so many people were talking on the radio I finally turned it off. I just couldn’t stand hearing these guys saying ‘How much gas have you got left?’ ‘I’m going in shortly.’ ‘I’ve got two minutes left.’ That sort of thing.</blockquote>
After two hours of dead reckoning towards their task force, the desperate Americans weren’t sure where their ships were. They gazed down through their canopies into an eerie dark emptiness. All seemed lost.
And then Mitscher, a flier himself who loved his airmen like a father, made one of the bravest decisions of the war: He ordered all the lights of the fleet illuminated, fired brightly burning star shells, and sent spotlights crisscrossing the dark tropical sky. Considering this would announced their location to any Japanese submarine in the vicinity, it was a remarkable decision. The surviving planes began to land as best they could or belly into the water next to their ships if too heavily battle-damaged or when their tanks finally ran dry.
Over the subsequent days, Mitscher’s ships searched far and wide to try and recover as many floating airmen as they could. Although the battle cost the lives of 49 aviators, amazingly, over the course of the week, 160 water-logged fliers were fished out of the water. Mitscher would be revered for risking his ships to rescue his airmen rather than abandoning them to die a lonely, torturously slow death bobbing in the open ocean.
<div id="attachment_772651" style="width: 720px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-772651" class="size-large wp-image-772651" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/USS_Lexington_CV-16_Philippine_Sea-710x576.jpg" alt="Grumman F6F-3 fighter landing aboard the Essex Class carrier USS Lexington (CV-16) - flagship of Task Force 58 - during the Battle of the Philippine Sea, June 1944. Official US Navy Photograph. (Enhancement by DLJ - Wild Surmise). Wikimedia Commons." width="710" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/USS_Lexington_CV-16_Philippine_Sea-710x576.jpg 710w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/USS_Lexington_CV-16_Philippine_Sea-300x243.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/USS_Lexington_CV-16_Philippine_Sea.jpg 725w" sizes="(max-width: 710px) 100vw, 710px" />USS Lexington during the Battle of the Philippine Sea, June 1944. US Navy. Wikimedia Commons.</div>
The raid on June 20, 1944, and subsequent perilous return trip, would be remembered as the “Mission Beyond Darkness.”
The two-day Battle of the Philippine Sea cost the Americans relatively little compared to the Japanese who lost three fleet carriers, three oilers, and over 3,000 sailors and airmen killed in action or lost at sea, including over 600 pilots.
In two days, the U.S. Navy rendered Japanese naval air power impotent. Still, many on Task Force 58 fumed that the hesitant Spruance, by not immediately attacking the Japanese ships when first sighted, had denied them an even greater victory. For his part, however, Spruance saw his primary mission as protecting the landings, not chasing after enemy carriers. Especially when they could have been a decoy — a tactic the Japanese would actually use to lure the aggressive “Bull” Halsey into abandoning the landings at Leyte four months later, nearly dooming MacArthur’s Philippines reconquest.
Regardless, the battle at sea was over, but the bloody fighting on Saipan raged on.
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<h4><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-battle-of-saipan-part-one-invasion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RELATED: The Battle Of Saipan, Part One: Invasion</a></h4>
<h4><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-battle-of-saipan-part-two-the-great-marianas-turkey-shoot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RELATED: The Battle Of Saipan, Part Two: The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot</a></h4>
* * *
Brad Schaeffer is a commodities trader, columnist, and author of two acclaimed novels. Along with Daily Wire, his articles have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New York Daily News, New York Post, National Review, The Federalist, The Hill and other media outlets. His newest book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Life-Pits-Rough-Tumble-Exchange/dp/B0CKPNCMQW/ref=sr_1_1?adgrpid=1331509151681009&amp;hvadid=83219665089301&amp;hvbmt=bp&amp;hvdev=c&amp;hvlocphy=97755&amp;hvnetw=o&amp;hvqmt=p&amp;hvtargid=kwd-83219680392082%3Aloc-190&amp;hydadcr=18892_13467888&amp;keywords=brad+schaeffer&amp;qid=1698162015&amp;sr=8-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amazon.com/Life-Pits-Rough-Tumble-Exchange/dp/B0CKPNCMQW/ref%3Dsr_1_1?adgrpid%3D1331509151681009%26hvadid%3D83219665089301%26hvbmt%3Dbp%26hvdev%3Dc%26hvlocphy%3D97755%26hvnetw%3Do%26hvqmt%3Dp%26hvtargid%3Dkwd-83219680392082%253Aloc-190%26hydadcr%3D18892_13467888%26keywords%3Dbrad%2Bschaeffer%26qid%3D1698162015%26sr%3D8-1&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1722366620272000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0vhiW3SrKDrsWDil8BZYgg">LIFE IN THE PITS: My Time as a Trader on the Rough-and-Tumble Exchange Floors</a>, is a fun and informative memoir of his time as a floor trader in Chicago and New York. You can also find more of Brad’s articles on <a href="https://bradschaeffer.substack.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://bradschaeffer.substack.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1722366620272000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3J2TVu4lEyxt1MB9TGXQzF">Substack</a>.
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The Battle Of Saipan, Part Three: Mission Beyond Darkness

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