Jason Beardsley: Pentagon's 'extremism' blunder – this move could make US military even more political

The Pentagon created a policy mess nine years ago by trying to tackle "extremism" in the military, and it’s about to get a lot messier. 

The rule was reasonably clear before – it said active-duty personnel cannot "actively advocate supremacist doctrine, ideology or causes, including those that advance, encourage or advocate illegal discrimination based on race, creed, color, sex, religion, ethnicity or national origin…" It also said military personnel can’t actively participate in any groups that advocate this discrimination.  A DOD definition of "extremism" will be a political definition, one that fits the Biden administration’s political point of view In 2012, DOD added the word "extremist" into the rule. Since then, military personnel have been prohibited from advocating "extremist" doctrine or actively participating in groups that advocate "extremist" doctrine.