Republicans Push Back Against Biden $114 Million DEI Request

Joe Biden is asking Congress to write another big check in the name of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

The request for Pentagon funding was enormous, $114 million, and it is not sitting well with Republicans.

That is especially the case since the Pentagon has just failed its sixth audit.

Not Responsible

We all know Pentagon spending is out of control.

Not so much in terms of what they are spending the money on but in the lack of accountability in that spending and the general lack of consideration for the costs.

Remember those reports more than a decade ago how the Pentagon was spending thousands on items such as hammers… not in total, but for a single item?

Well, the Pentagon has just failed its audit, again, something that it has not managed to pass for the last six years.

Last week, Pentagon Comptroller Michael McCord broke the news that the Pentagon had failed its audit yet again, stating, “The results of the sixth annual DOD-wide audit will again be a disclaimer of opinion, which means the auditors could not collect enough information to give us an audit opinion.”

That led to a post on X by the GOP Oversight Committee…

Last week, the Pentagon failed its 6th consecutive audit.

This week, they requested $114 million for DEI.

The Biden Admin’s focus on progressivism over warfighting continues to exacerbate the military recruiting crisis and calls into question our level of military… pic.twitter.com/UO7WrZphgB

— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) November 21, 2023

Plenty of other Republicans chimed in about the request, slamming the administration for being more concerned about being woke than in defending this country.

For instance, Rep. Ben Cline (R-VA) stated, “The Pentagon wants $114 million more to spend on DEI initiatives in 2024. No thanks.  How does this help the mission of keeping America safe and the warfighter trained?”

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) was a bit blunter, posting, “The Pentagon is asking for $114 million to spend on DEI programs next year. This is just days after they failed an audit for $1.6 trillion. If you’re waiting for the punchline, it’s not coming. This isn’t a joke.”

Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO) hit the nail on the head with his post, saying, “Americans are currently being held hostage — and global conflict surrounds us — yet the Pentagon has the gall to ask for $114 million for DEI.”

According to the Biden administration, DEI is needed to have a harmonious military, stating, “Ensuring diversity of backgrounds, thoughts experience, expertise, and education is critical to enhanced global joint warfighter capabilities fundamental to all DoD activities.”

Here is a crazy idea… how about we just train our troops to kill the enemy and defend this country? That seems to have worked pretty well for the last 250 years.