{"id":39543,"date":"2021-03-09T00:18:09","date_gmt":"2021-03-09T00:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/03\/09\/inside-the-pentagons-plan-to-keep-extremists-from-joining-up\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T07:36:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T07:36:08","slug":"inside-the-pentagons-plan-to-keep-extremists-from-joining-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2021\/03\/09\/inside-the-pentagons-plan-to-keep-extremists-from-joining-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside the Pentagon\u2019s plan to keep extremists from joining up"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Jan. 6 insurrection on Capitol Hill<\/a> and the extent to which current or former service members participated it served as a wake-up call to the Defense Department, Pentagon officials have said. DoD has been, however, aware of the encroachment of domestic extremism in the ranks in recent years<\/a>, and has made several reports<\/a> to Congress examining both instances of extremism and how they can combat it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A June report to the armed services committees<\/a>, posted online March 2, paints a detailed picture of the military\u2019s recruit background check process, including profiles of different extremist groups. It also includes seven recommendations to tighten up DoD\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several of the suggestions involve working more closely with the FBI, which has been sounding the alarm about the dangers of domestic extremism<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That would include running questionable recruit tattoos through the FBI\u2019s database, creating a consistent definition of domestic extremism for reference across the services, giving an unclassified version of the FBI\u2019s in-house domestic extremism training, as well as consulting other agencies about updating Standard Form 86, which the federal government uses to build background checks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Brandon Russell, at the time a private first class in the Florida Army National Guard, displays his Atomwaffen tattoo after his May, 2017 arrest for possessing bomb making materials. Russell was the co-founder of the Atomwaffen neo-Nazi group. (Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The only recommendation DoD hasn\u2019t started to implement is the suggestion to create a military separation code that would indicate domestic extremism as a cause for discharge, which would not only inform potential employers of past activities, but give DoD a way to centrally track the number of service members booted for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report, a requirement of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, is one of several made to Congress over the last few years. Still, Jan. 6 brought the stark reality of the issue into plain view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI obviously can\u2019t speak for what the previous administration did, but you\u2019ve heard the secretary talk about this, when he was a lieutenant colonel,\u201d Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told Military Times on Monday, when asked how veterans\u2019 participation in the riot could have come as a surprise, given that DoD has been aware of domestic extremism in its ranks for years. \u201cIt\u2019s not like it\u2019s a new problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DoD is facing a threat from domestic extremists, particularly those who espouse white supremacy or white nationalist ideologies, according to the Office of People Analytics report submitted in June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think what Jan. 6 brought to light … is how much it is still a problem, and certainly within the veteran community,\u201d Kirby said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Pentagon official, speaking on background, said as much to reporters in the days after the insurrection, adding that DoD was well aware that extremist groups not only target veterans, but encourage their followers to enlist for the free weapons and tactics training.<\/p>\n\n\n\t