The armed forces arithmetic isn’t adding up
By Maj. Gen. Dennis Laich, Jonathan Askonas and Gil Barndollar, opinion contributors — 12/06/18 08:30 AM EST
Politicians and generals frequently tell Americans that our military is “the finest fighting force the world has ever known.†The Romans and Mongols might have taken issue with that, but we do have an unparalleled ability to project power around the globe and win tactical engagements, regardless of the troubling results of our post-9/11 wars. Our military, however, has an enormous Achilles’ heel: its all-volunteer manpower system.
The bipartisan, congressionally-appointed National Defense Strategy Commission recently published its consensus report on the state of the U.S. military and its ability to meet the Trump administration’s National Defense Strategy (NDS). For the first time since the Cold War, the NDS focuses on the challenges of defeating near-peer competitors such as Russia or China. The report detailed many shortcomings, including the “secular decline†in the ability and propensity of Americans to serve in uniform. This shrinking manpower pool puts U.S. national security at long-term risk, the commission says, requiring the military and Congress to take “creative steps†to address the issue.
https://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/419641-the-armed-forces-arithmetic-isnt-adding-up
