Question is; will Congress approve the funding needed?
Military branches drafting expansion plans as Trump vows to rebuild 'depleted' forceFrom the Air Force to the Army, America's military service branches are busy preparing ambitious proposals to expand, as President Trump renews his pledge to rebuild a fighting force he says has become "depleted."
"Our country will never have had a military like the military we're about to build and rebuild,” Trump said at last week’s press conference. “It won't be depleted for long."
The president made rebuilding the military a centerpiece of his campaign, and sent a fresh signal of his intentions with his choice for national security adviser, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster – who for months has sounded the alarm about the declining state of the U.S. Army.
"We are outranged and outgunned by many potential adversaries ... [and] our army in the future risks being too small to secure the nation," McMaster told a Senate Armed Services subcommittee last April. Trump’s decision to tap McMaster brings a vocal advocate for boosting the Armed Forces into his inner circle.
Seeing an opening to address longstanding readiness concerns, the service branches all have proposed plans to expand. For some, they seek a gradual increase. For others, the proposed ramp-up would be steep.
The Air Force wants to expand its forces by 30,000 airmen over the next five-to-six years.
The Army wants to expand by roughly that amount by October, according to a defense official who shared the plan with Fox News but was not authorized to do so.
At the time of McMaster’s testimony last year, the Army was at its smallest level since before World War II. Earlier this month, the U.S. Army’s second highest-ranking officer said just 5 percent of his force could “fight tonight.” Gen. Daniel Allyn, vice chief of staff of the Army, said while a third of his 58 brigade combat teams could be ready soon, only three could deploy immediately in the event of sudden conflict.
As part of a proposed expansion, the Navy also wants 82 more ships and submarines, a 30 percent increase in the size of the fleet.
Last month, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller said he wants to increase his force by 3,000 Marines.
But increasing the ranks is only part of the plan....
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/02/21/military-branches-drafting-expansion-plans-as-trump-vows-to-rebuild-depleted-force.html
