According to a Nov. 16 memo signed by Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth, the service records of active-duty troops and reservists will be flagged on the day they make their final vaccine refusal, which follows a meeting with a medical professional and a second order to get vaccinated.
This mark on their record will prevent the soldiers from re-enlisting, being promoted, receiving future enlistment bonuses, attending service-related schools or receiving tuition assistance.
"I authorize commanders to impose bars to continued service for all soldiers who refuse the mandatory vaccine order without an approved exemption or pending exemption request," wrote Wormuth. "The soldiers will remain flagged until they are fully vaccinated, receive an approved medical or administrative exemption, or are separated from the Army."
The order also applies to National Guard troops, even those serving in states whose governors do not require the vaccine. Such a mark on their record would effectively end their careers in the military. (Related: Army surgeon warned that pilots could die in midair from COVID vaccine injuries… but was ignored.)
Wormuth's order is the culmination of a directive from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Aug. 25 that ordered all branches of the military to ensure that service members get vaccinated soon.
"To defend this nation, we need a healthy and ready force," wrote Austin in the August memo. "After careful consultation with medical experts and military leadership, and with the support of the president, I have determined that mandatory vaccination against coronavirus disease is necessary to protect the Force and defend the American people."
On Wednesday, Nov. 17, the Department of Defense (DOD) reiterated Austin's and the administration's stance on vaccine mandates for troops. A spokesperson for the department said that the secretary has the authority to "establish a medical readiness requirement that applies to members of the National Guard," adding that failure to meet this requirement "could jeopardize their status in the National Guard."
Oklahoma continues to resist vaccine mandate for National Guard
The issue of vaccinating the country's soldiers has come to a head in recent days as Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt opposed President Joe Biden's order to mandate vaccinations for all federal employees, including troops and the National Guard.
Stitt ordered his state's adjutant general, Thomas Mancino, to tell members of the Oklahoma National Guard that they do not need to comply with the vaccine mandate.
"This policy is not anti-vaccine. I and the governor are both vaccinated," said Mancino in a statement. "I encourage all our Oklahoma Guard members to get vaccinated if they choose to do so. We want to educate and inform our soldiers and airmen so that they can make an informed decision regarding the DOD vaccine mandate."
Stitt later asked Austin directly to suspend the vaccine mandate for the Oklahoma National Guard. According to Stitt's letter to the secretary, the vaccine mandate would force roughly 10 percent of the force to resign or be let go from the guard.
Other data points out that roughly 11 percent of Oklahoma Air National Guardsmen and 60 percent of Army National Guardsmen are unvaccinated. If this data is correct, the state's National Guard would be crippled so immensely that it would be unable to respond to any significant threats to the state.
The Oklahoma National Guard is not the only section of the armed forces to have a significant portion that remains unvaccinated. According to data provided by Army spokesman Lt. Col. Terence Kelley, just 77 percent of the Army – active-duty, reserve and National Guard – are either fully or partially vaccinated.
Most of those who remain unvaccinated belong to the National Guard. The data shows that just 51.84 percent of the Army National Guard is fully vaccinated. Meaning, of the 329,709 Army National Guardsmen serving in all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and U.S. territories, around 158,000 remain unvaccinated.
If the federal government insists on its reckless vaccine mandate for the armed forces, the results would be catastrophic and could put America in grave danger.
Learn more about how the COVID-19 vaccine mandate threatens America's military readiness by reading the latest articles at NationalSecurity.news.
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