Guard and reserve units fight for funds amid budget cuts The military’s reserve components are facing an uphill battle to preserve people, missions and money at a time of shrinking budgets across the force. A reserve advisory board is formally urging the Defense Department to continue the operational use of Guard and reserve units despite the end of the Iraq war and the drawdown in Afghanistan. Reserve advocates say part-time troops offer an affordable way to preserve military readiness. But that’s meeting stiff opposition from the Pentagon active-duty leadership, especially on the issue of the force mix between active and reserve forces. Many active-duty leaders want the reserves to bear a significant portion of the personnel cuts that may be on the horizon. Richard Wightman Jr., assistant secretary of defense for reserve affairs, said the Pentagon’s recent budget and strategy review included little discussion of force mix. “We feel like we kind of failed in that regard,” Wightman said at the Sept. 5 meeting of the Reserve Forces Policy Board. READ MORE: airforcetimes/article/20130906/NEWS02/309060011/Guard-reserve-units-fight-funds-amid-budget-cuts
Posted on: Fri, 06 Sep 2013 15:19:56 +0000