US Army quietly discharging immigrant recruits

originally posted by: Aazadan

Some of the service members say they were not told why they were being discharged. Others who pressed for answers said the Army informed them they’d been labeled as security risks because they have relatives abroad or because the Defense Department had not completed background checks on them.

apnews.com...

This is disgusting, apparently we're now purifying the military.

We're accelerating rapidly along 1930's Germany's path.

Thoughts on this? Does anyone support it? The military was relying pretty heavily on making numbers by offering a path to citizenship to legal immigrants and it seems that path has now been eliminated.

I guess this is some pretty strong evidence to the rumors that Mattis has been completely sidelined.

Hate to be the one to bring you truth, but I was active duty from 1976-2004. 1 - NO ONE gets discharged without knowing why - trees by the dozen are killed for the paper required to validate an out of the norm discharge and it’s reviewed by defense lawyers ad nauseum, plus dischargee gets copies of everything. 2 - recruits are told going in what the rules are if they can’t get a security clearance by the end of their first enlistment. Fact of life is that some are a threat to national security - I suppose you’d like Bin Ladens’ son to be cleared, after all, he didn’t do anything, right?

Please stop with the hyperbole. It’s pretty obvious you do not have the experience to have the facts on this topic. Doesn’t POTUS give you enough real stuff to question without having to make stuff up?

a reply to: Zaphod58

I guess a basic background check was done when I first joined and went off to Chicago, eg police check, credit. Same thing many private sector jobs do as well.

When I got to bootcamp that's when the background check for my clearance began and it was intense but much different than the background check I had done upon arrival. Why are these immigrants being investigated so deeply for? Is it because they're immigrants? Their investigation is more intense than mine and I know they aren't getting a clearance because last I knew only security clearances go to US citizens.

a reply to: Zaphod58

“Our military must prioritize enlisting American citizens, and restore the MAVNI program to its specialized, limited scope,” he said.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Suspended under Trump? Why?

What is this security clearance? Is it just to vett them like we do with refugees or is it for a Top Secret clearance?

I don't doubt that the article is correct and that all these people were discharged, but this happens all the time due to clearance issues.

What I'm wondering but don't know how to find out is -- is this more than usual? If this is two or three, or ten times more than usual, then there's more to it.

a reply to: Phage

Holy crap you're right! One person said we have to prioritize so that's proof that obviously they are! How could I have been so blind?

The US military thinks some people (up to 40) could have ties to terror orginizatuons, so they are releasing them, not throwing them in jail, but not allowing them in the army. You honestly think this is a BAD idea???

Would that mean, that these people should be in the army. If you ever typed the words ‘common sense gun control’, you obviously didn’t mean it. I don’t know what’s further from common sense then giving a person with possible terrorist ties not only a military assault rifle but access to secure places.

a reply to: Swills

It says very clearly in the source, to clear the backlog under the new requirements. It will depend on their field. The only fields eligible for MAVNI are medical and language.

a reply to: Kharron

It's a little more than usual because of the temporary suspension of the MAVNI program.

a reply to: Zaphod58
I agreed with you at first because I discounted the role of administration policies. With more information, I'm not at all confident that immigrants are not purposely being moved to the bottom of the list, thereby delaying their clearances and resulting in rejection.

Now, if there were an excess of recruits I can see that being a valid approach. Is there an excess of recruits?

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: Arnie123

And you still had to undergo an extensive background check regardless.

Yep.

a reply to: Phage

Every one of the affected people is part of MAVNI, and most of them are recent enlistees. Since MAVNI is suspended until they complete the existing checks, they can't get theirs done. Since they can't get it done, they can't go to Basic, so they were discharged. It's that simple. They're not deliberately forcing people out, despite the fact that Trump is President. I get he's apparently evil incarnate, but the Pentagon has said that once they get the current checks caught up, they'll open the program back up.

a reply to: Zaphod58

I see now,

It came under fire from conservatives when President Barack Obama added DACA recipients — young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally — to the list of eligible enlistees. In response, the military layered on additional security clearances for recruits to pass before heading to boot camp.

The Trump Administration added even more hurdles, creating a backlog within the Defense Department. Last fall, hundreds of recruits still in the enlistment process had their contracts canceled. A few months later, the military suspended MAVNI.

I see, an intensive background investigation for the non citizen but not for a security clearance, eg TS.

Republican Congressman Andy Harris of Maryland, who has supported legislation to limit the program, told the AP that MAVNI was established by executive order and never properly authorized by Congress.

“Our military must prioritize enlisting American citizens, and restore the MAVNI program to its specialized, limited scope,” he said.

So because of Republicans and Trump this program is over. Funny how this guy says it’s invalid because it was an EO yet probably doesn’t even get mad at all of Trumps past and future EO’s.

Trojan Horse comes to mind. And as long as we have a say, it's a good policy.

a reply to: Zaphod58

MAVNI was suspended in 2017, right? Which administration is that?

And those immigrants who enlisted before that, with the "promise" of expedited citizenship, had that rug pulled out from under them. Nothing to bitch about. Right?

Sounds like DACA to me.

a reply to: Swills

The program will be reviewed after they catch up. So no, it's not dead because of Trump or anyone else.

a reply to: Phage

Nobody cares. Serving in the military is a privilege not right. Many people get the rug pulled out from under them. Get over it.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Like DACA?

originally posted by: toysforadults
a reply to: Phage

Nobody cares. Serving in the military is a privilege not right. Many people get the rug pulled out from under them. Get over it.

Not a lot seem to be interested in the privilege, according to Zaphod:

Right now? I doubt it. All the services are practically begging people to join.

Forget it. It's not worth it.