[Vision2020] Ball's in Democrats' Court

[Tom Hansen]

>From the January 15, 2007 edition of the Army Times -

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Editorial
Ball's in Democrats' court

The new Democratic Congress has an ambitious agenda for its first 100 hours
in power, to include the national minimum wage, embryonic stem cell research
and alternative energy options.

But once past that initial blitz, Democratic leaders should turn their eyes
to these defense issues:

Force size. The House Armed Services Committee recently issued a report
concluding that all the services - not just the Army and Marine Corps - are
too small to meet current war needs and other U.S. security demands
worldwide.

While the Pentagon is drawing up plans to enlarge the Army and Marine Corps,
the Navy and Air Force continue to trim their ranks. The new Congress should
halt those drawdowns and begin a substantial debate on the proper size of
the force.

And it must face the fact that every additional 10,000 troops cost some $1.2
billion per year.

 
Support for veterans. 
The Republican-led 109th Congress adjourned without passing 11 of the 13
annual budget bills for fiscal 2007, including that of the Department of
Veterans Affairs. Leaders of the new Democratic-led 110th Congress say they
don't have time to clean up that mess because they must focus on the fiscal
2008 budget.

Lost in the jetwash: a proposed $3 billion increase in funding for VA health
care this year. Failing to approve that increase was irresponsible of the
last Congress. Repeating the mistake in this Congress would be inexcusable. 

BAH standards. 
The Pentagon and Congress together boosted the Basic Allowance for Housing
across the board over the past five years to a point where, today, it
theoretically covers 100 percent of average housing costs. But the job is
unfinished because BAH rates are based on inadequate housing standards
assigned by paygrade and family status.

Among enlisted members, for example, only E-9s draw enough to rent a
single-family home.

Congress should prod the Pentagon to update the housing definitions - and
consider eliminating the unfair distinction in the rates between those with
and without dependents.

Warrior pay. 
The Army has a proposal pending in the White House's Office of Management
and Budget to create a new pay to reward cumulative time spent on deployment
over a soldier's career, similar in purpose and design to Navy sea pay.

But the burden of repeated deployments is not solely an Army issue. Congress
should approve this compensation - but not just for soldiers. It should be
paid as well to airmen, Marines and sailors who deploy on ground missions to
the war zones.

An open court system.
At a time when the military is preparing to prosecute a number of soldiers
and Marines for war crimes and other abuses, it behooves the government to
ensure that the public has confidence in the fairness of the military
justice system. 

But unlike every other U.S. court system, the military produces no public
court docket, so service members' constitutional right to fair and open
trials are subject to the whims of base commanders and public affairs
officers who may or may not choose to announce upcoming courts-martial. 

The new Congress should direct the services to create a centralized docket
for military courts, accessible to the public. 

War funding.
When the Bush administration came to office six years ago, leaders pledged
to eliminate supplemental budget requests. Instead, not only has the overall
defense budget increased dramatically, but so have the supplemental
requests. 

Supplementals are acceptable to fund war requirements, but the services have
peppered them with other needs, ranging from modernization to research.
Modernization and research needs can be planned and budgeted. Supplemental
funding should cover war costs alone. 

Addressing these six priorities at the start of the 110th Congress would
show a commitment from lawmakers for the well-being of service members and
the long-term strength and viability of America's armed forces.

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I did not accept apathy from a Republican-run Congress when it comes to
veteran matters.  I will most certainly NOT accept it from a Democrat-run
Congress.

Caring for our troops must continue well beyond the end of enlistment.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"Patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion but the tranquil
and steady dedication of a lifetime." 

--Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.