Hot Seat: Rep. Duncan Hunter

Team Infidel

Forum Spin Doctor
San Diego Union-Tribune
April 20, 2008 By San Diego Union-Tribune
Former Army Vice Chief of Staff Richard Cody recently said “the current demand for our forces in Iraq and Afghanistan exceeds the sustainable supply” and that “soldiers, families, support systems and equipment are stretched and stressed.” Do you share his concerns?
Yes. That's why, as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, I directed the Committee Defense Review, which recommended that we increase the size of the Army and Marine Corps. The administration initially fought us, but now it agrees and we are growing both service branches. These additional people will give our troops more time to spend at home with their families.
On the equipment side, I directed the committee staff to develop a blueprint to get armored vehicles, jammers and body armor more quickly to Iraq. As a result, we moved 10,000 jammers to protect against roadside bombs, more than 20,000 Humvees have been up-armored, compared to 500 in 2003, and every soldier and Marine is equipped with the most advanced body armor.
And since equipment wears out quickly in harsh desert environments, I created a $50 billion bridge fund in the 2005 defense bill to keep our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan supplied as politicians wrangled over supplemental war funding at home.
In 2006, the Marines and Army told me that they would be $20 billion short on repairing battlefield equipment such as tactical vehicles, tanks and helicopters. I therefore added $20 billion for the “reset and repair” of equipment.
These initiatives must continue for our troops to be supplied on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan. That is why I sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi asking her to release the supplemental funding bill that is so vital to our troops. This bill provides funding for ammunition, equipment and pay for our troops, all of which are necessary for the continued success of our military men and women. This funding, as Gen. Cody said, is “critical to get back to strategic readiness.”
The Army's difficulties meeting recruiting quotas have led it to accept more non-high school graduates, more people with lower aptitude scores and thousands of recruits with criminal records. How big a problem is the quality of recruits?
As a person who looks over battlefield achievements in the Iraq and Afghan theaters, which include numerous citations for gallantry, I can confidently say that the young people of our military are truly outstanding. The remarkable spirit of our all-volunteer force is illustrated by the fact that units, such as the 3rd Infantry or the 101st Airborne Division, are exceeding their re-enlistment goals. This means that combat veterans believe so strongly in their mission that, even after combat, they want to continue serving.
Under which circumstances would you support resuming military conscription?
Military conscription is only necessary when you need vast amounts of personnel in quick time. It makes no sense to tell a person who volunteers and wants to serve that they can't join because someone has been drafted in their place.
What is your biggest criticism of the execution of the war in Iraq?
The difficulty in moving the bureaucracy and acquisition process that fields weapons and equipment to the battlefield remains a problem with this administration, just as it has with its predecessors. To counter this, I implemented a law that gives the defense secretary authority to waive all acquisition rules to move equipment quickly when we are taking casualties on the battlefield.
We used this to move portable “jammers” to combat roadside bombs. In fact, we used it to move 10,000 jammers to Iraq in 70 days. Yet this “fast-field” authority has only been used three times by the Pentagon bureaucracy.
Editor's Note: Every week the U-T puts a public figure on the Hot Seat, getting answers to your questions and ours.
 
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