[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 48 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. CON. RES. 48

 Recognizing 375 years of service of the National Guard and affirming 
    congressional support for a permanent Operational Reserve as a 
                     component of the Armed Forces.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 12, 2012

    Mr. Leahy (for himself and Mr. Graham) submitted the following 
  concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Recognizing 375 years of service of the National Guard and affirming 
    congressional support for a permanent Operational Reserve as a 
                     component of the Armed Forces.

Whereas the first volunteer militia unit in America was formed in 1636 in 
        Massachusetts Bay, followed by other units in the colonies of Virginia 
        and Connecticut;
Whereas from the opening salvos at Lexington and Concord, to the conclusion of 
        the American Revolutionary War in 1783, the volunteer patriots and 
        minutemen of the American militia helped create the United States of 
        America;
Whereas the American founding fathers wrote article I, section 8, of the United 
        States Constitution to keep the militia model, authorizing only a small 
        standing military force that could organize, train, and equip militia 
        volunteers when needed;
Whereas the American militia answered the call during the second war with 
        Britain in 1812;
Whereas in the 19th Century, during the Mexican-American War, the United States 
        Civil War, and the Spanish-American War, State militia volunteers 
        mustered when called and more than 300,000 gave their lives in service 
        of the United States of America;
Whereas in World War I, nearly all National Guardsmen were mobilized into 
        Federal service, and while they represented only 15 percent of the total 
        United States Army, they comprised 40 percent of the American divisions 
        sent to France and sustained 43 percent of the casualties in combat;
Whereas in World War II, the National Guard comprised 19 Army divisions and 29 
        observation squadrons with aircraft assigned to the United States Army 
        Air Forces;
Whereas the National Defense Act of 1947 formed the Air National Guard, created 
        a minimum of one flying unit in each State, with the result of more than 
        44,000 Air Guard troops serving in Korea and 4,000 Air Guard troops in 
        Vietnam;
Whereas the Air National Guard flew 30,000 sorties and 50,000 combat hours 
        during Operation Desert Storm over 37 days and were some of the first 
        units into the fight;
Whereas, on September 11, 2001, the first fighter jets over New York City and 
        Washington, DC, were Air National Guard F-15 and F-16 aircraft from 
        Massachusetts and North Dakota, with over 400 more Air National Guard 
        fighter aircraft on alert by that afternoon;
Whereas 456,974 Air and Army National Guard soldiers and airmen have deployed in 
        the many campaigns since 9/11;
Whereas Air and Army National Guard soldiers and airmen have been involved in 
        countless domestic response missions, including missions in response to 
        hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and forest fires;
Whereas during the Cold War, the National Guard was regarded as a Strategic 
        Reserve to be held in case of a Soviet invasion of Europe, yet, since 9/
        11, the National Guard and the Federal Reserves have made the transition 
        to an Operational Reserve, in constant use and rotation for missions at 
        home and abroad;
Whereas the Operational Reserve has time and again demonstrated its readiness to 
        meet operational requirements, and its mission- and cost-effectiveness 
        and volunteerism are the heart of modern United States military service;
Whereas the Operational Reserve must be sustained by a fully manned and fully 
        funded National Guard in the spirit intended by the Framers and 
        enshrined in article I of the Constitution; and
Whereas the Air Force, in its fiscal year 2013 budget, has advanced a proposal 
        to convert the Air National Guard from the Operational Reserve to the 
        Strategic Reserve of yesteryear: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) recognizes the critical importance of the Operational 
        Reserve as a component of the Armed Forces, particularly as a 
        means of preserving combat power during a time of budget 
        austerity;
            (2) supports making permanent the Operational Reserve as 
        the cornerstone of military manpower in the decades to come;
            (3) repudiates proposals to return the Reserve Components 
        to a diminished or purely strategic role in United States 
        national security;
            (4) affirms the growth of the Operational Reserve as 
        circumstances warrant; and
            (5) recognizes the dual-status, State-Federal National 
        Guard as the foundation of the Operational Reserve and of 
        military manpower now and in the future.
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