Maintaining an Apolitical Army
Ruck march with American flag
September 03, 2021
The following essay was the winner of the Lieutenant General (Ret.) Theodore J. Stroup JROTC Achievement Award, a scholarship program hosted by AUSA’s Education & Programs for the benefit of JROTC cadets.
Apolitical means not interested in or connected with politics, or not connected to any political party.1 Lieutenant General James Dubik (2020) wishes to bring to light the need of maintaining an apolitical military in his essay, “Rebalancing Needed to Preserve Apolitical Military.”2 A politicized military exercises loyalty toward a single political party, creating the notion of a divided military. The military was created to protect and serve the country and its civilians in a democratic manner. However, if we were to view the military as a politicized organization, we would be throwing away any sense that they are here to serve and protect as loyal and selfless members of the nation. A politicized military would no longer be loyal to the country, but toward a political party. This would endanger their constitutional obligation: their oath to serve, protect and defend the Constitution of America.
An apolitical military is needed because, without it, the personal interest of politicians and the antics of war over peace would destroy the very foundation of the military; without an apolitical military, the division of political parties would cause the military to default in its constitutional obligation. No longer would it support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Instead, it would serve politicians wanting to use it for their own personal gain.
We can view it like this: if there were to be a politicized military, the members of the military would get to pick and choose who they protect, why they protect, and when they protect, because of how each political party serves their own. Those in uniform can always exercise their rights as members of society, but not to the extent that they publicly identify with party ideology.
https://www.ausa.org/publications/maintaining-apolitical-army
