The US Army post at Fort Knox had apparently invited Ted Nugent, along with Styx and REO Speedwagon, to an event to be held on June 23rd.  Following Ted Nugent’s recent foray into the spotlight for his comments at an NRA convention, his invite has been cancelled.

The reasoning for the cancellation:

A spokesman for Fort Knox told TheBlaze.com that having Nugent perform “would be a conflict of interest since the military has the obligation to be apolitical.”

The article, printed on MSNBC, notes that such a statement is tortured:

Such a claim, though, seems dubious when it comes to choosing entertainers, who oftentimes show their partisanship. At its website, for example, Fort Knox is touting an appearance this month by comedian Jay Phillips who is supportive of Obama through his Twitter activities. And Ludacris has performed at U.S. Army bases even after the 2008 release of his pro-Obama song “Politics As Usual,” which calls Hillary Clinton, who was running against Obama at the time, a “b[–]ch” who is “irrelevant.” The ultra-partisan song also called President George W. Bush “mentally handicapped” and says that Sen. John McCain “don’t belong in any chair unless he’s paralyzed.”

Even Michael Weinstein started a “chant” at Rock Beyond Belief a few weeks ago, rallying a few dozen in the crowd to yell they “want their civil rights…now” to President Obama — hardly an “apolitical” act that even some supporters found embarrassing.

Like any institution, the US military occasionally invites various individuals and groups to entertain or address its members.  At times, someone in a position of influence chooses to override a prior invite.  The sticky part is artfully articulating a valid reason for that change.  It’s a skill few organizations have.