[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 109 (Thursday, September 7, 2006)]
[House]
[Page H6342]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   U.S. MILITARY'S READINESS PROBLEMS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. SKELTON. Mr. Speaker, on July 5, 1950, near the city of Osan in 
South Korea, North Korean forces faced a battalion of American soldiers 
who had been sent to stop the Korean advance. This battalion of 406 
soldiers was undermanned, under-trained and poorly equipped. These 
soldiers fought a 7-hour battle that ended in retreat, and with 150 
American infantrymen killed, wounded or missing.
  This battalion was known as Task Force Smith, and its failure was due 
to a lack of readiness on the part of our military after World War II. 
Today, Mr. Speaker, I am concerned that the low readiness levels of the 
Army and the Marine Corps are going to once again endanger our troops.
  Mr. Speaker, I have spoken about readiness problems before. And it 
continues to concern me as this situation worsens. Let me be blunt. Our 
ground forces and their reserves face a crisis with manpower and 
equipment shortages and will be challenged to complete their missions 
should they be called to respond to an emergency.
  Mr. Speaker, I have used the word ``readiness'' many times before. 
But I feel it necessary to clearly define its meaning. Readiness 
describes the condition of our military forces. It is a measure of how 
well they are manned, trained and equipped to complete the full range 
of missions necessary to defend our Nation.
  This is why the falling readiness levels of our Army and our Marine 
Corps are so disturbing. They indicate that we may not be able to 
defend our Nation's interests wherever they may face challenges. The 
most striking example of this problem is with equipment. Over 40 
percent of the Army and Marine Corps ground equipment is now deployed 
to Iraq or Afghanistan. It is wearing out as much as nine times faster 
than normal. Only 3 years in Iraq has placed as much as 27 years of 
wear on our equipment, forcing the Department of Defense to cannibalize 
the equipment of non-deployed units and the National Guard.
  This cannibalization of equipment has left the Army without a single 
combat brigade in the Continental United States ready for all of their 
war-time missions.
  Simply put, the war in Iraq is sapping our strategic base and leaving 
us with a broken Army. The Armed Services Committee is nearing 
agreement to add $20 billion to the Defense Authorization Act for next 
year to try to help fix this grave situation.
  This will help, but the Department's readiness problems are too large 
to be fixed by a one-time investment. Together, the Army and Marine 
Corps need an astounding $29 billion in 2007 to repair or replace 
equipment damaged in Iraq and Afghanistan. The amount is only part of 
the overall bill that represents a snapshot in time of a problem that 
is large and continues to grow.
  The problem has developed over time due to mismanagement and a 
failure on the part of the administration to adequately plan for Iraq. 
It cannot be solved overnight. Congress can continue to provide band-
aids for readiness shortfalls by funding through supplementals, but the 
Army and Marine Corps are limping along. They cannot keep pace with 
falling readiness levels.
  The only way to truly solve this problem is for the administration to 
commit to fully funding the needs of the Department of Defense. This 
country is at war. Americans have a right to expect the administration 
to realistically budget for national defense. The stakes are high. Mr. 
Speaker, we cannot afford another Task Force Smith.

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