Pentagon Revises Religious Identity Codes After Backlash from Mormon Leaders
Pentagon Pete Scrambles to Fix ‘Repugnant’ Religion Move
Image: The Daily Beast
The Pentagon, led by Pete Hegseth, faced backlash after removing Mormonism from its list of religious identities for service members, prompting swift condemnation from GOP leaders, including Sen. Mike Lee. Following the uproar, the DOD revised its list to include Mormons and simplified the coding system.
- 01The Department of Defense (DOD) reduced the number of religious identities from over 200 to 31.
- 02Mormonism was initially excluded from the new list, prompting outrage from GOP leaders, including Sen. Mike Lee.
- 03The DOD's Rapid Response account attempted to clarify the situation but made errors in its messaging.
- 04The updated list of Religious Affiliation Codes now includes the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons).
- 05Sen. Lee initially condemned the exclusion, calling it 'repugnant' before later praising the DOD's reversal.
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Pete Hegseth's Department of Defense (DOD) is facing backlash after a spokesperson announced a significant reduction in the number of religious identities service members can register, from over 200 to just 31. The exclusion of Mormonism from this list triggered outrage from prominent Republican figures, including Senator Mike Lee, who described the move as 'repugnant' and implored the Pentagon to reconsider. In response to the uproar, the DOD attempted to clarify its position through its Rapid Response account on X, but initial communications contained errors, including a false claim about a 'leaked' list. The DOD later confirmed that the updated list of Religious Affiliation Codes would include Mormons and emphasized that the goal was to simplify an overly complex coding system. Following the revisions, Lee expressed gratitude to Hegseth for correcting the error, highlighting the importance of respecting all sincerely-held faiths within the military ranks. Analysts noted that the hasty changes suggested a lack of careful planning in the DOD's approach to the issue.
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The DOD's decision affects how service members identify their religious affiliations, which could influence their access to religious support and resources within the military.
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