[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 91 (Thursday, June 24, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H4831]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            U.S. MILITARY FORCES FALLING UNDER SEVERE STRAIN

  (Mr. ROGAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ROGAN. Mr. Speaker, we Republicans are the first to urge 
government to do more with less. However there are limits, and the 
United States military has reached them. More and more experts are 
becoming alarmed at the level of funding available to meet our defense 
needs. U.S. military forces are being called to perform more and more 
missions, but they are being given fewer and fewer resources to 
accomplish them.
  Mr. Speaker, while precious resources are being diverted to the 
Balkans, our critical missions in both Iraq and Korea are falling under 
severe strain. Our forces are short on ammunition, and our force levels 
have been reduced to dangerously low levels. Since 1989, the Army and 
Air Force have been cut by almost 50 percent, the Navy by 36 percent, 
and the Marine Corps by 12 percent. All while our commitments overseas 
have increased some 300 percent.
  This mismatch must not continue, Mr. Speaker.

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