{"id":2521696,"date":"2025-12-16T11:50:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T16:50:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dow-to-review-records-of-troops-fired-over-covid-shot-edict\/"},"modified":"2025-12-16T11:53:23","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T16:53:23","slug":"dow-to-review-records-of-troops-fired-over-covid-shot-edict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dow-to-review-records-of-troops-fired-over-covid-shot-edict\/","title":{"rendered":"DOW To Review Records Of Troops Fired Over Covid Shot Edict"},"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\">22<\/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%2Fdow-to-review-records-of-troops-fired-over-covid-shot-edict%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=2521696&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>Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has issued a memorandum directing a thorough review of discharge records for military personnel who were separated from service due too refusing the Biden administration&#8217;s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Signed on December 6, the directive requires the War Department to proactively identify <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-releases-list-of-president-trumps-accomplishments-and-it-is-historic\/\" title=\"White House Releases List of President Trump\u2019s Accomplishments \u2013  And It Is Historic!\">service members<\/a> discharged solely for vaccine refusal and facilitate upgrading their discharge status to reflect honorable characterization. This action follows ongoing Pentagon efforts to reinstate affected troops, acknowledging that thousands were unjustly discharged with less-than-honorable designations despite maintaining personal or religious convictions. Hegseth tasked Under Secretary of War for Personnel and Readiness Anthony Tata to coordinate and implement policies for this review, with authority that cannot be delegated. The memorandum comes amid reported bureaucratic resistance to reinstatement orders and reflects a commitment to correct perceived injustices linked to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate in the military.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:SECWAR_transits_through_the_Yokota_hub_(9379570).jpg\">David Calcote\/U.S. Air Force\/Wikimedia Commons<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/12\/16\/hegseth-orders-review-of-discharge-characterizations-for-troops-booted-over-bidens-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Hegseth%20Orders%20Review%20Of%20Discharge%20Characterizations%20For%20Troops%20Booted%20Over%20Biden%E2%80%99s%20Covid%20Shot%20Mandate&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/12\/16\/hegseth-orders-review-of-discharge-characterizations-for-troops-booted-over-bidens-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Hegseth%20Orders%20Review%20Of%20Discharge%20Characterizations%20For%20Troops%20Booted%20Over%20Biden%E2%80%99s%20Covid%20Shot%20Mandate&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/12\/16\/hegseth-orders-review-of-discharge-characterizations-for-troops-booted-over-bidens-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/12\/16\/hegseth-orders-review-of-discharge-characterizations-for-troops-booted-over-bidens-covid-shot-mandate\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Hegseth%20Orders%20Review%20Of%20Discharge%20Characterizations%20For%20Troops%20Booted%20Over%20Biden%E2%80%99s%20Covid%20Shot%20Mandate&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/12\/16\/hegseth-orders-review-of-discharge-characterizations-for-troops-booted-over-bidens-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Secretary of War Pete Hegseth signed a memorandum ordering a reevaluation of discharge characterizations for service members removed from service for foregoing the Biden-era Covid shot mandate, the Pentagon <a href=\"https:\/\/www.war.gov\/News\/News-Stories\/Article\/Article\/4361100\/war-department-reevaluates-discharge-characterizations-for-covid-vaccine-refusal\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">revealed<\/a> Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>Signed on Dec. 6, the <a href=\"https:\/\/media.defense.gov\/2025\/Dec\/15\/2003842948\/-1\/-1\/1\/RESTORING-HONOR-TO-SERVICE-MEMBERS-SEPARATED-UNDER-THE-CORONAVIRUS-DISEASE-2019-VACCINE-MANDATE.PDF\">new directive<\/a> instructs the War Department to undertake a &ldquo;proactive review of personnel records, to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tampa-mayors-offices-clarifies-threat-police-looking-for-vandals-not-maskless-revelers\/\" title=\"Tampa Mayor\u2019s Offices Clarifies Threat: Police Looking For Vandals, Not Maskless Revelers\">identify individuals<\/a> who were <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" ><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/desantis-denounces-kicking-out-unvaccinated-troops\/\" title=\"DeSantis Denounces Kicking Out Unvaccinated Troops\">involuntarily discharged<\/a> solely<\/a> for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine and facilitate appropriate discharge upgrades.&rdquo; As The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/24\/hegseth-orders-additional-guidance-to-reenlist-troops-booted-over-bidens-unlawful-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, more than 8,700 troops were effectively forced out of the military for opting not to get the experimental jab. <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-815369969\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>In his memo, Hegseth acknowledged the Pentagon&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/11\/25\/exclusive-war-dept-battles-internal-resistance-to-reinstate-86-soldiers-ejected-by-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ongoing efforts<\/a> to reinstate members &ldquo;who were involuntarily discharged or voluntarily left Military Service&rdquo; as to avoid the &ldquo;unfair, overbroad, and unnecessary&rdquo; mandate. He further noted that &ldquo;It is unconscionable that thousands of former Service members who held true to their personal and religious convictions were not just separated, but separated with General (Under Honorable Conditions), rather than Honorable, discharge characterizations.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;While many have applied for and received relief from our Military Department review boards, I believe the onus is on us to make this right,&rdquo; Hegseth wrote.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to instructing the Pentagon to conduct the aforementioned review of personnel records, Hegseth has ordered the Under Secretary of War for Personnel and Readiness Anthony Tata to &ldquo;provide implementing policy and guidance and direct staffing requirements to the Secretaries of the Military Departments.&rdquo; Under this edict, Tata &ldquo;will issue directive guidance in this area, coordinated with the Secretaries of the Military Departments, outside the standard Department process &hellip; and with the authority to direct appropriate staffing and to amend this memorandum as required,&rdquo; according to the memo.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This authority,&rdquo; Hegseth added, &ldquo;may not be redelegated.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p><strong>[Report:[Report:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/09\/report-trump-admin-ousts-official-who-shepherded-bidens-military-covid-jab-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Trump Admin Ousts Official Who Shepherded Biden&rsquo;s Military Covid Jab Mandate<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The secretary&rsquo;s memorandum came amid <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/11\/25\/exclusive-war-dept-battles-internal-resistance-to-reinstate-86-soldiers-ejected-by-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reporting<\/a> by The Federalist&rsquo;s Joy Pullmann about bureaucratic resistance to quickly implementing orders by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/presidential-actions\/2025\/01\/reinstating-service-members-discharged-under-the-militarys-covid-19-vaccination-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">President Trump<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/24\/hegseth-orders-additional-guidance-to-reenlist-troops-booted-over-bidens-unlawful-covid-shot-mandate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hegseth<\/a> to reinstate members affected by the Biden-era mandate. While the numbers &ldquo;change frequently,&rdquo; the War Department confirmed to The Federalist last month that, as of Nov. 15, &ldquo;86 soldiers have been reinstated so far, out of 617 who have applied, for a total of 14 percent reinstatements so far,&rdquo; Pullmann reported.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/biden-administration\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Biden administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/covid-vaccine-mandates\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">covid vaccine mandates<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/department-of-war\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Department of War<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/military\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">military<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pentagon\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Pentagon<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pete-hegseth\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Pete Hegseth<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/reinstatement\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">reinstatement<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/service-members\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">service members<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sec. of War Hegseth orders review of Covid vaccine discharge cases<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2521697,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Pete-Hegseth-2.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[68898,7401,68897],"class_list":["post-2521696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-covid-shot","tag-dow","tag-troop-records"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Pete-Hegseth-2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2521696","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\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2521696"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2521696\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2521700,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2521696\/revisions\/2521700"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2521697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2521696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2521696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2521696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}