Episode 12: The Military Recruiting Crisis Was By Design

In 2023, the Army missed its recruiting goal by 10,000 soldiers. Two years later, every branch beat its goal months early. So what changed?

In Episode 12, Doug Truax and Will Thibeau dig into the Army’s own data, as reported by Military.com. White recruits fell from 44,042 in 2018 to 25,070 in 2023, and the Army tiptoed around the decline instead of fixing it. Army officials name the cause themselves: parents, coaches, and pastors stopped recommending military service.

Then Doug and Will look at the comeback. Once leadership put warfighting first, recruits returned. A recovery built on messaging can be lost just as fast, though, which is why the reasons recruits came back belong in law.