{"id":1581130,"date":"2022-07-31T08:36:18","date_gmt":"2022-07-31T12:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1581130"},"modified":"2022-07-31T08:36:30","modified_gmt":"2022-07-31T12:36:30","slug":"desantis-denounces-kicking-out-unvaccinated-troops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/desantis-denounces-kicking-out-unvaccinated-troops\/","title":{"rendered":"DeSantis Denounces Kicking Out Unvaccinated Troops"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdesantis-denounces-kicking-out-unvaccinated-troops%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1581130&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"subheading\">Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) spoke out on Wednesday against the Biden administration\u2019s vaccine mandate for members of the military.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[Biden] still insists on imposing vax mandates through the federal government. Yes, we\u2019ve beat him on the business mandate. We\u2019ve not complied with the medical mandate. But they\u2019ve kicked people out of military based on these COVID shots. They\u2019re trying to\u00a0kick people out of the National Guard around the country based on these,\u201d DeSantis <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/CghVVpYpRZ3\/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=\">said<\/a> at a press conference.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"gmxrevmore\" class=\"H\"><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThese are shots where you take all these boosters and still get infected.\u00a0There is no justification to impose those mandates on anybody, and whether it\u2019s federal contractors\u2026whether it\u2019s how some of these people in the military have just been treated so horribly \u2014 this is just wrong,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>DeSantis said hopefully Biden would use his recent COVID-19 infection as an opportunity to admit he was wrong about imposing mandates and reverse his policies and \u201clet people earn a living.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>People are being forced to \u201cchoose between a job they need and a shot they don\u2019t want,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p>DeSantis joins a growing chorus of Republican voices opposing the Biden administration\u2019s vaccine mandate on members of the military.<\/p>\n<p>The opposition has grown louder as the effects of the mandate have become clearer.<\/p>\n<p>Biden\u2019s Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin imposed the mandate in August 2021, and since then, nearly 7,000 service members have been involuntarily discharged from the military.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_20587691\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/media.breitbart.com\/media\/2022\/04\/House-Defense-Budget.jpg\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the fiscal year 2023 defense budget, Tuesday, April 5, 2022, in Washington.\u00a0(Evan Vucci\/AP)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>After a deadline for National Guard members and Army reservists to be fully vaccinated passed on June 30, the Army barred approximately 60,000 soldiers from deploying, training, or being paid for federal duty, or collecting time towards retirement.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B3\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<p>The military, however, has only granted religious exemptions to service members leaving service, which has prompted several high-profile lawsuits that have blocked the Navy and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/07\/27\/judge-halts-punishment-of-airmen-who-filed-for-religious-exemptions-from-vaccine-mandate\/\">Air Force<\/a> from separating or punishing service members who filed for religious exemptions.<\/p>\n<p>Military-wide, 264,830 service members are still not fully vaccinated, as of July 27, 2022, out of a force of approximately 2.1 million.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p>The potential discharge of tens of thousands of troops comes as the military is facing a historic recruiting crisis, which has forced the Army to downsize for the first time ever due to recruitment difficulties.<\/p>\n<p>The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley\u00a0earlier this year <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/04\/06\/general-milley-downplays-kickingout-troops-vaccine-mandate\/\">downplayed losing troops<\/a> over the vaccine mandate.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_21306322\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GettyImages-1398858599-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-21306322\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GettyImages-1398858599-1.jpg\" alt=\"ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA - MAY 23: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley participates in a news briefing at the Pentagon May 23, 2022 in Arlington, Virginia. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley spoke on various topics including Russia\u2019s invasion to Ukraine and whether the U.S. would react militarily if China attacks Taiwan. (Photo by Alex Wong\/Getty Images)\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley participates in a news briefing at the Pentagon May 23, 2022 in Arlington, Virginia. (Alex Wong\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B4\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cThe numbers are very low, by the way, of those that are refusing to be vaccinated, and they\u2019re even lower. I mean, it\u2019s tiny the numbers that are actually being asked to process out. So I think it\u2019s manageable, and I think that I would prefer that everybody just go ahead and get vaccinated,\u201d Milley responded to questioning by Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN).<\/p>\n<p>Pentagon leaders have vowed to continue the mandate, insisting it is a readiness issue, but National Guard officials have acknowledged that losing tens of thousands of service members could impact its readiness.<\/p>\n<p>Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, director of the Army National Guard, <a href=\"https:\/\/kjzz.com\/news\/army-guard-troops-risk-dismissal-as-vaccine-deadline-looms-thursday-national-guard-lawsuits-air-guard-air-force-military-exemptions-marine-office\">told the Associated Press<\/a> in a recent interview, \u201cWhen you\u2019re looking at, 40,000 soldiers that potentially are in that unvaccinated category, absolutely there\u2019s readiness implications on that and concerns associated with that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s a significant chunk,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this week, National Guard reservist and Green Beret colonel Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/07\/26\/exclusive-rep-mike-waltz-leads-letter-asking-dod-to-comply-with-law-outline-vaccine-exemptions\/\">led a letter<\/a> signed by 49 other House Republicans and first reported by Breitbart News urging Austin to clarify guidelines on exemptions and to take into consideration troops\u2019 natural immunity.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_16916792\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Rep.-Mike-Waltz.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-16916792\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Rep.-Mike-Waltz.jpg\" alt=\"Waltz\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill with members of The American Legion on June 16, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Samuel Corum\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong><em>Follow Breitbart News\u2019s Kristina Wong on <a href=\"http:\/\/www.twitter.com\/kristina_wong\">Twitter<\/a>\u00a0or on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/kristinawongreporting\">Facebook<\/a>.<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) spoke out on Wednesday against the Biden administration\u2019s vaccine mandate for members of the military. \u201c[Biden] still insists on imposing vax mandates through the federal<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1581297,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1581130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1581130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1581130"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1581130\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1581297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1581130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1581130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1581130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}