It would also have to go hand-in-hand with a decree from HAF that the Masters is once again masked. Masking it alone isn't going to solve it. People will be paranoid and still go get it for fear that one day, the "next guy" will come in and unmask the AAD, leaving some poor suckers without a chair when the music stops.
Masking it AND saying "no more TA to get BS degrees" sends a much more clear message, and one that would be much more difficult to reverse down the road.
Cutting TA would make it very difficult for upper management to tout the AF as the "most educated" force, though.