Navy Deploys Drag Queen to Solve Recruiting Crisis
Leave it to the military to find new and creative ways to make a big problem worse.
Amid record recruiting shortages, the U.S. Navy decided that the best way to boost morale and convince youth to enlist in the armed forces would be to deploy their secret weapon: drag queens.
Joshua Kelley identifies as a non-binary drag queen who goes by the stage name “Harpy Daniels.” He also serves as a 2nd Class Petty Officer in the U.S. Navy. Kelley first announced his partnership with the Navy on Instagram in November of 2022, writing, “Thank you to the Navy for giving me this opportunity! I don’t speak for the Navy but simply sharing my experience in the Navy! Hooyah, and let’s go Slay!”
Kelley was one of five Digital Ambassadors approached by the U.S. Navy to participate in a pilot program, which ran from October 2022 to March 2023. The program was “designed to explore the digital environment to reach a wide range of potential candidates,” a Navy spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The Navy claimed to be navigating, “the most challenging recruiting environment it has faced since the start of the all-volunteer force.” The spokesperson added that Kelley was not compensated for being a Navy Digital Ambassador.
Kelley responds to several comments on his TikTok account, often attempting to prove critics wrong. In one video, he even took aim at TPUSA Faith Contributor and military veteran Graham Allen, who said, “This is not the same military I served under . . . Our enemies LAUGH at us.”
Kelley captioned his video response, “Haters only Hate when you are winning. LGBTQ+ People never could serve open[ly] because of DADT [Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell]. Now that we can, you can see who the Homophobic and Transphobic people are.”
Former U.S. Navy SEAL Team Six member, Robert J. O’Neill, who played a central role in the operation that killed Osama bin Laden, fumed on Twitter following the announcement. “Alright. The US Navy is now using an enlisted sailor Drag Queen as a recruiter. I’m done. China is going to destroy us. YOU GOT THIS NAVY. I can’t believe I fought for this bulls-t,” O’Neill wrote.
“A survey from the Ronald Reagan Institute found that only 13% of 18-29-year-olds are ‘highly willing’ to join the military. Twenty-five percent are ‘somewhat willing’ and 26% are ‘not willing at all.'”
Fox News
It’s not shocking that the military is having a difficult time recruiting new enlistees. Over the past few years, thousands of service members were denied religious exemptions from taking the COVID-19 vaccine. At the same time, the Department of Defense (DoD) released statements claiming that “diversity” is a “strategic imperative.” John Kirby, former DoD spokesman who now works on the National Security Council, told Americans that LGBTQ+ rights are “human rights” and are a “core part” of U.S. foreign policy.
The U.S. Navy even took time to celebrate the “International Transgender Day of Visibility” by releasing an article showing their undying loyalty to LGBTQ+ doctrine.
“The article propagates the progressive narrative which says that ‘transgender individuals [are] victims of targeted attacks’ because of their identity, despite the total lack of evidence to support the claim. ‘The observance day provides an opportunity to raise awareness about transgender individuals and their contributions to society, while also drawing attention to the discrimination and violence many trans individuals face.’ the article states. ‘You don’t have to understand someone’s identity to respect it.'”
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It is possible that the ramped-up efforts to pander to the progressive left aren’t actually working for the U.S. military? Yes. Will military leaders course correct, and start advertising American values again anytime soon? I won’t be holding my breath.
“Hooyah, and let’s go Slay!”
Joshua Kell– I mean, Harpy Daniels, U.S. Navy Drag Queen
