77% Of Us Youth Unqualified For Military Service

Delving deeper into the problem, Task and Purpose mentions in an August 2022 video that unqualified citizens, economics, declining trust in the military, and woke culture have exacerbated themilitary's recruitment woes.

Low educational attainment and criminal records disqualify many potentialmilitary recruits. In a February 2018 article for The Heritage Foundation , Thomas Spoehr and Bridget Handy mention that themilitary requires a high school diploma or General Equivalency Diploma (GED) to qualify, which eliminates many young Americans from being able to serve.

Spoehr and Handy point out that despite theNational Center for Education Statistics reporting an adjusted cohort graduation rate of 83% in the 2014-2015 school year, this statistic does not account for lowered graduation standards, incomplete data or students who transferred to other programs.

Low educational attainment also impacts the US's ability to maintain its technological edge against near-peer adversaries like China and Russia.

In an April 2022 article for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) think tank, Gabrielle Athanasia and Jillian Cota note that theis falling in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) proficiency compared to other leading countries. It cites 2019 data showing theaverage mathematics score ranked 15th among international students, lower than China, South Korea, Japan Singapore and Russia.

Spoehr and Hardy also point out that criminal history hinders young adults' ability to join themilitary. They mention that previcriminality prevents one of every ten young adults from being able to join the military, meaning that 3.4 million people who would otherwise qualify are unable to join, with their disqualifying criminal behavior starting early in their youth.

Meanwhile, Task and Purpose points out that theunemployment rate is at its lowest in decades, with February 2023 data from theDepartment of Commerce showing that theunemployment rate has dropped to 3.4%, with over a half million jobs created in January and 800,000 manufacturing jobs created in the last two years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Those figures, Task and Purpose notes, have decreased the available manpower pool for themilitary to draw from, as potential recruits have more lucrative employment options.

Declining trust in themilitary has also impacted its appeal to prospective recruits, according to reports. In a July 2023 article for Gallup , Mohammed Younis notes that Americans are less likely to express confidence in themilitary, with a noticeable decline that has persisted over the past five years.

Younis mentions that confidence generally held above 70% after the 9/11 terror attacks, until dipping to 69% in 2021 and declining further since the rapid withdrawal from Afghanistan.

He notes that Republicans have been the most likely to express confidence in the military, but the rate has declined by over 20 percentage points in three years, from 91% to 68%.

He also says Independents' confidence has dropped nearly as much, from 68% to 55%, and that they now have less confidence than Democrats.

The protractedwars in Afghanistan and Iraq, followed by the disastr2021withdrawal from the former, may have engendered a sense of pessimism inpublic and policymaking circles, damagingsociety's perceptions of themilitary.

“Woke culture” may also be a significant factor in decliningmilitary recruitment rates.“Woke” refers to awareness and attention to critical societal facts and issues, especially related to race, gender and social justice.

In a June 2023 article for Task and Purpose , Jeff Schogol mentions that for two years Republican lawmakers have accused the military of going“woke,” with the term being used to attack lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) service members and claim the military is becoming too feminine.

Schogol notes that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has made his criticisms of the“woke military” a pillar of his campaign to win the Republican party's presidential nomination.

Schogol also notes that House Republicans recently added an“anti-woke” amendment to a budget bill that would prevent theDepartment of Veterans Affairs from providing abortions, transgender health care or flying LGBTQ Pride flags.

As for the impact of“wokeness” onmilitary recruitment, Schogol citesArmy Secretary Christine Wormuth, who has voiced concerns that the politicization of military leaders contributes to a decline in trust in the military.

She also stressed that theArmy is a“ready Army” and not a“woke Army,” as it struggles to address its recruitment problem.