This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Friday, May 5th, 2023. Watch out for the revenge of the 5th if you’re into that… or cinco de mayo, take your pick.
 
https://tvpworld.com/69620835/us-navy-deployed-drag-queen-influencer-to-boost-youth-recruitment
 
As part of a recruitment drive aimed at the country’s youth, the U.S. Navy deployed a "drag queen influencer" to assist in boosting lagging numbers in the military.
 
In November of last year Joshua Kelley aka “Harpy Daniels”, who has over 1,300,000 likes on TikTok, revealed that he was to be the Navy’s ‘Digital Ambassador’.
 
Whilst the U.S. Navy only recently revealed about approaching Kelley, the drag queen claims to have danced in drag in front of an audience of service officers on a number of occasions, even sharing one video from 2018 on his Instagram.
 
Kelley was part of a Digital Ambassador initiative that lasted from October 2022 to March 2023, “designed to explore the digital environment to reach a wide range of potential candidates,” a Navy spokesperson told Fox News. The spokesperson also said that the Navy is navigating “the most challenging recruiting environment it has faced since the start of the all-volunteer force.”
 
“The Navy did not compensate YN2 Kelley or any others for being Navy Digital Ambassadors. The pilot has concluded and we are now evaluating the program and how it will exist in the future," the spokesperson added.
 
Regarding his role as Digital Ambassador, Kelley wrote on his Instagram page: “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! Hoorah, and let's go Slay!”.
 
Not only the Navy but more broadly the U.S. military face big problems in convincing young people to join. Only 13 pct of 18-29-year-olds are “highly willing” to join the military, whilst 25 pct declared themselves “somewhat willing” and 26 pct are “not willing at all.”
 
Gender ideology has become a hot topic in the Navy and all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.
 
In March, a group of House Democrats proposed legislation to prevent the Department of Defense from standing in the way of transgender people who want to serve in the military.
 
Some critics have argued that the purpose of the U.S. military is to provide security for the country, not to be a tool for gender ideology politics. Whilst others have suggested that in an unstable world, where a lot of military strategy is played out through bravado, such as with military drills, it is perhaps surprising that the U.S. would do the opposite of striking fear into their enemies. 
 
It’s a good thing we have Joshua to scare off said enemies, which ties in nicely for this next story!
 
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2023-05-03/second-oil-tanker-in-a-week-seized-by-iran-in-gulf-u-s-navy
 
Iran Seizes Second Oil Tanker in a Week in Gulf -U.S. Navy
 
Iran seized a second oil tanker in a week on Wednesday in Gulf waters, and the U.S. State Department called for its release, in the latest escalation in a series of seizures or attacks on commercial vessels in Gulf waters since 2019.
 
The Baa-rain-based Fifth Fleet of the U.S. Navy said the Panama-flagged oil tanker Niovi was seized by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) at 6:20 a.m. (0220 GMT) while passing through the Strait of Hor-mooz.
 
In Iran's first response, Tehran's prosecutor announced the oil tanker was seized on a judicial order following a complaint by a plaintiff, the judiciary's Mizan news agency said. No further details were provided.
 
The incident comes after Iran on Thursday seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman called the Advantage Sweet. That tanker is being held by Iranian authorities in Bandar Abbas, the Marshall Islands flag registry said on Tuesday.
 
Maritime security firm Ambrey has said it believed the Advantage Sweet's seizure was in response to a recent seizure via a court order by the Unite