President Donald Trump is planning to reinstate service members who were discharged for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, marking a potential end to a controversial saga that saw thousands expelled during the pandemic. Retired U.S. Army bomb disposal expert and Rep. Brian Mast praised the plan, calling it a 'great day for patriots' and 'a great day for our service members.'
Retired U.S. Army bomb disposal expert and Rep. Brian Mast hailed President Donald Trump's plan to reinstate service members discharged for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine, marking a potential end to the controversy that saw thousands expelled during the pandemic. 'This is a great day for patriots, a great day for our service members, my brothers and sisters in arms,' the Florida Republican congressman told 'Fox & Friends' co-host Steve Doocy. 'Let's not forget... it wasn't just the military.
It was other government agencies as well, where they were essentially purging conservatives who were raising their hand, saying, 'I don't want to take this vaccine.'They were washing them out of government, washing them out of West Point and Naval Academy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine academies, washing them out from being on the next promotion boards for first sergeants, sergeants, majors or officers, and they were creating a system where the ones that were going to be giving promotion to the next classes of individuals were all going to be those that didn't say, 'No, I'm not a conservative, and you know, I'm okay with everything that you're doing right now.' That's what was taking place.'A White House fact sheet outlining the executive order states that only 43 of the over 8,000 service members discharged by the Biden administration and then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin returned to service after the vaccine mandate was repealed in 2023. The same fact sheet indicates that reinstated troops – both active duty and reserve – will be restored to their previous ranks and receive back pay and benefits under Trump's order. Mast introduced legislation in 2023 requiring military departments to reinstate individuals upon their request who refused the vaccination. 'It's going to be beautiful to have these individuals returning, putting on that uniform, that sense of pride for their family, that they stood up for their causes, what they believed in, and they were rewarded for it. They're returning back to the military,' Mast added. Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy, also appearing on 'Fox & Friends' Monday, commended Trump for 'doing the right thing' by reinstating the troops. 'There were a lot of younger people who said, ‘This is a government vaccine, at least government-funded,’ and they don't completely trust the government, and on principle, they said, 'We don't want to take the vaccine. Dr. Fauci… he made them. He tried to establish complete control over everybody. Why did he do that? In my opinion, he was scared,' he said. 'I think we're going to find out was funding gain of function research in a Chinese lab, and the virus may have gotten out from the lab. Dr. Fauci saw that, and he said, 'Oh my God, I could get blamed for all this, so I'm going to have to establish complete control, so nobody has questions and nobody looks under the seat cushions.' I thought he went too far in terms of mandating the vaccine for everybody.' Signing the executive order will fulfill a promise made during Trump's address to inauguration attendees from the Capitol rotunda last Monday. Newly-confirmed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth endorsed the plan during his confirmation hearings before the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier this month
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