(Congressional Agenda) – Earlier in December, the United States Senate gave their stamp of approval for 425 military promotions, however, one person was not on the list: Col Ben Jonsson. Jonsson is a member of the Air Force who earned a reputation for espousing controversial views on the topics of race and diversity. These two issues are going to completely rip this country apart, which might have been the point from the start.
“Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., stepped in to hold Jonsson’s ascension to brigadier general after a 10-month blockade of all military promotions by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. When fellow Republicans threatened to join Democrats to circumvent Tuberville by changing Senate rules, the senator withdrew his objection,” The Daily Signal reported.
As a result of this action, military officers who were then singled out due to having “woke” views on the issues of COVID, sexuality, and race, were quickly promoted Dec. 5, except for a few of the higher ranking generals, along with Jonsson himself. Senators conducted a vote last Thursday to give the promoted officers retroactive pay for the time they were forced to wait for their promotions.
“The Daily Signal first reported in August on Jonsson’s views on diversity, equity, and inclusion—and his endorsement of a book on critical race theory. The story prompted The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project to request and obtain a Defense Department ‘climate’ assessment of during Jonsson’s leadership of MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida,” the piece continued.
The assessment in question included a rather harsh criticism of Jonsson from those beneath his command at MacDill, where he was in charge for two years, dating from 2020 to 2022.
Not long after The Daily Signal published the story in November, the outlet came to possess information concerning Jonsson’s time serving as commander at MacDill, which included an official DEI policy memo and an email from a field-grade officer that promoted the diversity agenda to his wing.
“I worked under Col. Jonsson when he was the wing commander at MacDill Air Force Base and witnessed many troubling things,” a veteran Air Force officer, who requested to remain anonymous, went on to say. “When [President Joe] Biden was elected, he said elatedly in a meeting with all squadron commanders, ‘Now we can start doing diversity training again.’ He also forced the COVID vaccine and masking harder than any other commander I am aware of. At a time when no one in Florida was wearing masks off base, he routinely would keep the base in heightened state of Health Protection Condition.”
Schmitt released a statement to The Daily Signal where he offered an explanation for his choice to block the promotion of Jonsson in the Senate, stating he is opposed to leaders in the military who promote DEI.
“It is long past time to root out divisive DEI policies and their advocates from our apolitical military,” Schmitt continued. “Leaders must emphasize unity of mission and purpose, not our immutable differences, if we are to maintain our military as the greatest meritocracy in the world. I cannot in good faith allow the confirmation of individuals who advance this divisive DEI ideology to proceed by unanimous consent.”
“Shortly before becoming commander of the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, Jonsson wrote an 825-word commentary published in the Air Force Times on July 1, 2020. In it, he recounted several examples of what he described as ‘white defensiveness’ in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death the previous May 25 while in the custody of Minneapolis police,” the report revealed.
Jonsson stated, “Dear white colonel, it is time to give a damn. Aim High.”
“As white colonels, you and I are the biggest barriers to change if we do not personally address racial injustice in our Air Force. Defensiveness is a predictable response by white people to any discussion of racial injustice. White colonels are no exception. We are largely blind to institutional racism, and we take offense to any suggestion that our system advantaged us at the expense of others,” he continued.
Jonsson then included an endorsement of critical race theory supporter Robin DiAngelo’s book, “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism.”
https://t.co/FjeS0OjhyY
When the U.S. Senate unanimously approved 425 military promotions earlier this month, one person was missing from the list: Col. Ben Jonsson, the Air Force officer who espoused controversial views on race and diversity.— WetGeek (@WetGeek) December 20, 2023
Down below you’ll see, in its entirety, an email that was sent out by Jonsson where he expresses the importance of DEI training in the Air Force. These people truly do not care about the division they are sowing among the American people and the damage they are ultimately doing by promoting cultural Marxism. We are no longer a land where people are judged by the content of their character, which was also the goal of Martin Luther King Jr.
Instead, we’re right back to making it all about the color of a person’s skin.
“I urge you all to take the time to read and thoroughly digest the historic review of our Air Force’s institutional struggle with racial disparity as it relates to military discipline and professional development.
Our Air Force’s senior leaders are sincerely committed to moving well beyond initial recognition of our racial issues and towards lasting and impactful policy changes to make a more equal, diverse, and inclusive Air Force.
The first sergeant and I chaired another poignant D&I discussion this afternoon with some of our brave marauders who volunteered to join the discussion on the social struggles facing our nation and Air Force today as it related to injustices, discrimination, and inequalities.
I challenge you to step out of your comfort zone and volunteer to join on our next D&I discussion in a few weeks when you are ready. Remember, our grassroot[s] efforts are essential to ensuring we stay incrementally focused on the fundamental issues and challenges our generation of airmen must tackle.
Your Air Force, wing, group, and squadron leadership are all in … the question is, are you?”
“Senate rules allow an individual senator to object to “unanimous consent,” the process used to confirm a large bloc of nominees or promotions. That’s how Schmitt is able to put a hold on Jonsson’s promotion. Following the Senate’s approval of 425 military promotions Dec. 5, only a fraction still await action, according to the Senate’s executive calendar. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said those promotions could be on the docket this week,” The Daily Signal continued.
As of now, Tuberville is standing in the way of about a dozen high-ranking generals getting promoted to four-star rank. The Pentagon has promised to work with him in order to get the situation resolved so the promotions can be given. All the Pentagon has to do is stop pushing radical progressivism down the throats of the American people who have volunteered to sacrifice their time and maybe even their lives to protect our nation and what it stands for.
Will the progressive deep state allow that to happen and place a halt on their agenda pushing? Doubtful.
Copyright 2023. CongressionalAgenda.com
People like that and their line of thinking are doing nothing but further dividing the people of this once great nation. Any military person that pushes this phony diversity business is weakening the readiness of our services, and opening the window to any of our enemies that would get embolden by these words and actions by our military leaders.
With 2, presumably adopted, black children, jonsson’s “agenda” is clearly in his personal interests.
The military, including even the U.S. Air Force, is already as fair as any organization out there as far as affording any race an equal playing field… with a lean toward minorities already in the equation.
The fact the military couldn’t promote all of the other waiting woke officers speaks volumes about the woke progressive, always prima-donnas, O-6 and higher ups.
The problem in the US military is that no one wants to jeopardize their own career and that next promotion.
That’s the way all difficult journies start, one step at a time! Lesson learned, next journey is illegal immigration deportation. One step/person/family at a time.