As international threats and crises continue to pop up almost daily, a Texas leader is sounding the alarm. Sen. John Cornyn warns the U.S. military is "not ready" to combat the diverse threats faced around the world. Cornyn made the warning in a speech at the Woodrow Wilson Center. "To address these threats, to maintain the peace, and fight if we must, we have to maintain a capable, ready and modern military," said Cornyn. "And the truth is, we're not ready."
Cornyn specifically expressed concerns about the lack of necessary resources and funding for the military, and called for an end to the automatic across-the-board federal budget cuts known as sequestration, which have hit the military hard in recent years. "U.S. military readiness and modernization, already under great stress and stretched thin around the world, has suffered under 15 years of continued operations, budgetary restrictions, and deferred investment," said Cornyn.
Retired Army Major Gen. Bill McClain tells KTRH he agrees with Cornyn's comments and applauds the senator for bringing up the issue. But McClain believes the problems go beyond a lack of funding. "It's not just getting more money, it's having a real concern for what the readiness is, and money is just a part of that," says McClain. He adds that recruiting is also an issue for the military right now. "The number of young people who can physically qualify to be in the military is shrinking, and the total number of young people is shrinking, so the challenges are not anything small."
Help may be on the way. President Donald Trump called for an end to sequestration during the campaign, and has proposed a massive increase in military spending in his first budget.