![]() It's not easy, but there are mechanisms for active duty troops to be punished for hate group activity. LAWRENCE: He says it's important to focus on active duty troops because there's much less that can be done once they become veterans. But when you loose that on a civilian society that doesn't have the ability to track it down or identify it, it's literally like poison. SMITH: They're just good at keeping hidden because they're a small fraction of the military. Troops who are radicalized aren't always easy to spot, Smith says, since many lay low while in service with the aim of picking up military skills. Earlier this month, a senior defense official told NPR there's been an increase in extremist activity in 2020, but that official had no figures on recruits disqualified or troops facing discipline or criminal charges. Just last month, a Pentagon report admitted there is still no standardized data about the numbers and suggested further research is needed. LAWRENCE: Smith is skeptical of Pentagon promises after spending decades trying to root out gangs and white supremacists from the military. Are you taking another bite, or are you going to get you another sandwich? SMITH: Or less than 1% of your sandwich is dog crap. LAWRENCE: Carter Smith worked Army criminal investigations for 22 years. With a million people in the military, that's a small number, less than 1%, but still significant.ĬARTER SMITH: If I say, hey, less than 1% of that drink that you've got is cyanide, are you sipping another time? Another dozen members of the National Guard were removed from the detail of guarding President Joe Biden's inauguration, at least two for extremist connections. QUIL LAWRENCE, BYLINE: Dozens of vets or still-serving military took part in the January 6 attack on Congress. GARCIA-NAVARRO: But as NPR's Quil Lawrence reports, the military has been making similar promises for years, with so far little to show. LLOYD AUSTIN: The job of the Department of Defense is to keep America safe from our enemies, but we can't do that if some of those enemies lie within our own ranks. #ROOT OUT FARRIGHT EXTREMISM RANKS CRACK#Austin told senators he is aware that some in the mob had connections to the military, and he promised to crack down. Two weeks after a violent mob carried racist symbols into the Capitol, Army General Lloyd Austin, now the first Black Secretary of Defense, was on Capitol Hill for his confirmation hearing. ![]()
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