Two Republican presidential contenders took aim at the Army's recent move to rename military bases that for decades honored Confederates who waged war against the U.S., saying that as president they would return to those rebel namesakes.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence promised to restore Fort Liberty, North Carolina, to Fort Bragg. The base was renamed this month, scrubbing the name of a Confederate general widely considered among the least successful military leaders in the conflict.
The renaming of nine Army bases was ordered by Congress in 2021 and approved by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin as part of a process to remove Confederate tributes. Fort Liberty was the only Army installation not renamed after Medal of Honor recipients, war heroes or highly respected figures such as Vietnam veteran Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and his wife Julia.
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“It's an iconic name and iconic base, and we're not gonna let political correctness run amok in North Carolina,” DeSantis, who was referencing Fort Bragg, told a crowd at the North Carolina Republican Party convention Friday.
DeSantis trails former President Donald Trump in the polls — about 22% of voters support him, according to FiveThirtyEight's compilation of national polling data — but he remains ahead of other GOP hopefuls.
The Florida governor has used cultural grievances as a key…
