{"version":"https://jsonfeed.org/version/1","title":"Restore the Military","home_page_url":"https://restorethemilitary.fireside.fm","feed_url":"https://restorethemilitary.fireside.fm/json","description":"Hosted by military veterans Doug Truax and Will Thibeau, Restore the Military podcast is designed to cut through Pentagon spin and focus on real legislative reform.","_fireside":{"subtitle":"Restore the Military podcast explains exactly what is broken in our military—and how Congress can actually fix it.","pubdate":"2026-06-23T12:00:00.000-04:00","explicit":false,"owner":"Hayden Ludwig","image":"https://media24.fireside.fm/file/fireside-images-2024/podcasts/images/9/91f58ac7-6309-4149-836a-77ffe250e1a1/cover.jpg?v=1"},"items":[{"id":"3529795d-81bc-4af5-bc10-f9a536b22d70","title":"The Battle Over Merit in America's Military","url":"https://restorethemilitary.fireside.fm/the-battle-over-merit-in-americas-military","content_text":"The Supreme Court struck down race-conscious admissions in 2023. The service academies are still operating like it didn't happen. \n\nDoug Truax and Will Thibeau break down the legal exposure, the DEI architecture embedded across the Department of War by directive and instruction, and what a real statutory prohibition looks like — with enforcement teeth, audit authority, and consequences. The window to fix it before the next Court ruling is closing.","content_html":"\u003cp\u003eThe Supreme Court struck down race-conscious admissions in 2023. The service academies are still operating like it didn't happen. \u003c/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDoug Truax and Will Thibeau break down the legal exposure, the DEI architecture embedded across the Department of War by directive and instruction, and what a real statutory prohibition looks like — with enforcement teeth, audit authority, and consequences. The window to fix it before the next Court ruling is closing.\u003c/p\u003e","summary":"The episode opens with a pointed argument: the Supreme Court's 2023 Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard ruling struck down race-conscious admissions in higher education, but the service academies have continued operating under identity-based admissions frameworks using an untested \"national security\" rationale. Doug and Will argue the legal exposure is real and growing — and that it's better to fix it through statute now than have a court opinion force the issue later.","date_published":"2026-06-23T12:00:00.000-04:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/91f58ac7-6309-4149-836a-77ffe250e1a1/3529795d-81bc-4af5-bc10-f9a536b22d70.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mpeg","size_in_bytes":35931950,"duration_in_seconds":898}]}]}