Pentagon PressRelease: Politicized Military Would Lose Public Trust, Official Says

[maddezmom]

WASHINGTON, April 28, 2008 th If the U.S. military lost its politically neutral footing, the armed forces would surrender the public's trust, a senior U.S. military officer who explained a new Defense Department directive on troops' political activity said in an interview. "If we do appear to be influenced by our own views or our own understanding of how things should be, we're going to lose the public trust," Army Col. Shawn Shumake, director of legal policy within the Office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, told the Pentagon Channel.





(Media-Newswire.com) - WASHINGTON, April 28, 2008 – If the U.S. military lost its politically neutral footing, the armed forces would surrender the public’s trust, a senior U.S. military officer who explained a new Defense Department directive on troops’ political activity said in an interview.
“If we do appear to be influenced by our own views or our own understanding of how things should be, we’re going to lose the public trust,” Army Col. Shawn Shumake, director of legal policy within the Office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, told the Pentagon Channel. “We’re going to lose the confidence that’s so important and that the military has maintained for so many years.”

To reinforce the military’s apolitical position, the Defense Department has renewed its emphasis on the rules limiting what troops may or may not do within the political arena, Shumake said.

The new version of a department-issued directive titled “Political Activities by Members of the Armed Forces” became effective Feb. 19 and replaces the previous version, released in August 2004. It adds two sections that discuss candidacy and campaigning issues pertaining to former military members, retirees and current military reservists running for elected office.

Under certain circumstances, some reserve-component members can run for or hold elective political office, Shumake said in an interview with American Forces Press Service. Yet, there is “a right way and a wrong way to do that,” he stressed, noting the new language describing those issues.


more:http://media-newswire.com/release_1065258.html

[htuttle]

1. "If the U.S. military lost its politically neutral footing,..."

Um, about 5 years too late on that point, chums...

:eyes:

[niyad]

2. too late, people. the military IS politicized,and the influence of the reichwing evangelicals is

way too deeply felt. I have no respect for the military anymore, and certainly no trust.

[angstlessk]

3. I believe this is because the military is disgusted with the current occupant

and would probably campaign for a Democrat..

[sinkingfeeling]

4. Way too late. I lost trust in the military around 1964.