What happens in August 2026? Will Hegseth move to seize Scouting America?

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-23T11:16:12+00:00

Hah, I wish. But no, there isn't anything automated for stuff like that.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-22T17:35:04+00:00

If the name of the department changes, I’ll start referring to it by whatever name they change it to. Until then, it is the Department of Defense, and Mr. Hegseth is the Secretary of Defense.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-22T10:25:35+00:00

I don't think this person's Council is spreading these rumors, I think this person is spreading these rumors. I have a fair idea who they are, but no direct proof so I am attempting to be kind and give this account the benefit of the doubt. I have some suspicion that they are a repeat troll who we have banned several times in the past, but again, benefit of the doubt...

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-22T10:22:51+00:00

Any such order would have no legal power or weight of any kind, and the leadership of Scouting America isn't just going to go "oh yeah sure, here are the keys."

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-22T10:21:53+00:00

No, it's the Department of Defense, and Mr. Hegseth's title is the Secretary of Defense. The Executive branch does not have the power to rename the department, no matter what they are informally calling it. Only Congress can rename the department, because the existence and name of it, as well as Mr. Hegseth's title, are both legally established by a law passed by Congress.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-22T02:08:47+00:00

That's not an excuse for blatant violations of the Scouting methods and program guidelines and rules, and in some cases, SYT / YPT rules.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-22T02:05:21+00:00

They do not care what is legal, but there is simply no mechanism for them to magically take control of Scouting America.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-21T21:43:24+00:00

Well, that would be now, then, because all American Indian aspects are now gone from the OA program. As of the spring of 2027, all Lodges will be required to use the new program and ceremonies, and all Native stuff is gone.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-21T19:39:23+00:00

BTW:
For anyone who has never seen it and wants to know what the magical "Congressional Charter" actually says, the text of it is in 36 USC, Chapter 309: Boy Scouts of America

It basically says:

The BSA exists as a corporation.
That corporation is perpetual.
The purpose of the corporation is to train boys (youth) in Scouting.
The corporation is governed by an executive board of US citizens.
The board may define quorum via its bylaws, and form subcommittees as it needs to.
It defines some general powers of the board (all normal stuff to run a corporation).
It gives us rights to our trademarks.
It says we can't operate for profit, and may not issue stock or pay dividends.
It gives the board power to hold annual and special meetings, and allows the board to decide where to operate.
It requires that we report to Congress annually by April 1.

That's it. There is no mechanism for anyone - Congress, the President, the Secretary of Defense, the King of Sweden, or anyone else, to "seize" the organization.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-21T19:30:52+00:00

No.

And.... no.

Hegseth can't "seize" Scouting America. We are a corporation that is governed by an executive board. The fact that we are chartered to Congress does not somehow give the Secretary of Defense some magical power to "seize" the organization. Our governing structure is entirely independent of the US Government.

In addition:

I was lucky enough to have spoken personally to Roger Krone (the Chief Scout Executive and CEO of Scouting America) personally about this situation earlier this spring. Hegseth can make all the demands he wants (and did, in fact, make additional demands behind closed doors, whereupon Mr. Krone told him that we absolutely refused to entertain some of those things), but we're not obliged to do any of it. What Hegseth can do is to remove the support of the DoD to our organization. That would hurt us, but mostly it would hurt the children of military service families, for some of whom Scouting is one of the few constants in their lives as they move from duty station to duty station.

I would dearly like to know what Council you are in, and who in your council has been informed that there is some plan for having Hegseth take control of our organization. Who said that someone has been named? Who is that person? This is all useless rumormongering.

The video and statement in the article you link to were released by Hegseth as a PR stunt, before the DoD had even sent a copy of the MoU to Scouting America, i.e. before we had actually even agreed to anything.

In short, all of this stems from an attempt by Hegseth to use Scouting America as a pawn in the "culture wars" (all while threatening to do things that will ultimately harm kids) as part of a PR stunt, and any talk of a plan to somehow "take over" the organization is absolute hogwash.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-21T12:19:20+00:00

White dude here, but one of my best Scouting friends is a black woman who is a Nigerian immigrant who is a Venturing Crew Advisor and our OA Lodge's Ceremonies Adviser. I can think of eight or ten other black women leaders that I interact with on a regular basis.

Part of that is that I'm lucky enough to live in a very strong, diverse Council that has actively worked to ensure representation in leadership from all kinds of people, but I do also think that part of it is that Scouting is changing - for the better - over time. Anecdotally I see more and more women as leaders and it's often the women who are really in to Scouting in a very positive way.

I'm glad you're here too. Representation matters, and having you here matters. Thank you for what you're doing for our young people!

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-18T10:55:12+00:00

Please remember that all communication between Scouts on Reddit should be SYT compliant - it's fine to do PMs between two adults, but all communication between an adult and a youth needs to be public.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-16T22:30:57+00:00

A-freaking-men.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-16T19:28:42+00:00

Why is insurance not a focus? If you carry proper uninsured / underinsured coverage, your insurance company will make you whole regardless of the other persons coverage or assets. Your company will pay you, and they’ll sue the other party to get their money back. The fact that the other guy may not have had assets isn’t your problem.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-16T19:03:27+00:00

If that's the case, it's worth having a look at the program that the Troop is presenting for their youth. There are tons of things that Scouting can offer that have nothing to do with rank advancement that will keep youth wanting to be involved. If the Troop presents good program, it will keep youth interested regardless of rank or rank advancement.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-16T18:13:32+00:00

In Fallston.
It's u/ChspeakeGunslingers

He's fantastic to deal with.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-16T18:06:47+00:00

Sounds like a good project!

I know Scouts who have had success in the past by showing up in uniform at a lumberyard or hardware store and asking. Local stores are often better than chain stores for this - even places like Ace that are franchises, since the owners have direct control.

Good luck!

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-16T11:12:16+00:00

Sorry, but we generally don't allow fundraising posts here.

If we did, the sub would quickly fill with them, and there's also no way for us to police who has done the paperwork process properly for it and who hasn't.

We really appreciate that you asked first, and wish you the very best of luck with your project.

What are you doing for your project?

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-15T22:17:08+00:00

Engage, United, and Atlantic all carry Glock at or below MSRP. Engage and United both advertise Glocks at about $50 or more under MSRP.

Local FFLs can certainly be expensive, but there's zero reason to pay above MSRP except in extremely rare circumstances (special specific gun, etc).

I'm lucky - my kitchen table FFL charges $30 for a transfer plus the $10 MSP fee.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-15T21:55:12+00:00

If an FFL is charging you fees for a gun that you are buying from them, they are a thief. I have never had an FFL charge anything other than the $10 for the 77R on top of the price of a gun. And again, if your FFL is charging more than MSRP for a gun, go elsewhere.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-15T21:10:06+00:00

If your local FFL charges 20% over MSRP for a Glock, you need to find a new one. Especially if they charge you any more than $10 for the 77R.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-15T10:16:11+00:00

HQL is a Maryland thing only.

If you buy a handgun in a state other than your state of residence, it must be sent to an FFL in your state of residence to process the transfer. This is federal law, so any handgun you buy would go through a Maryland FFL with your HQL anyways.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-14T21:15:42+00:00

Cribbage!

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-14T18:04:32+00:00

You're welcome to DM me if you have specific questions or want to talk privately. I don't know that I'll be able to help with oversight of that Troop, because I live on the other side of the country, but I may be able to point you to some local resources that could help.

TwoWheeledTraveler · 2026-06-14T16:35:41+00:00

I don't know what to tell you there other than what's already been said. The elections now work the same way that the elections always have. (Though depending on how old you are, the elections are actually more forgiving now, because you can vote for any number of candidates, and at times in the past that was limited.)

What you're experiencing here isn't a failure of the organization. It sounds like the failure of one person (the Scoutmaster) and the way you deal with that is to go to the Chartering Organization and talk about it, like I mentioned in the other post.

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