[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 11280]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 MILITARY REDUCTIONS SEND THE WORST POSSIBLE MESSAGE TO OUR ADVERSARIES

  (Mr. CARTER of Texas asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Speaker, I have long opposed reductions in 
our military, and I continue to believe that our Nation should maintain 
a robust land force. The announcement to reduce the Army by 40,000 
troops sends the worst possible message to our Nation's adversaries. 
Cuts that extend into heavy armored combat units go even further to 
weaken our national defense and put us at risk.
  I am especially disappointed about the Army's plan to cut so heavily 
from Fort Hood and the State of Texas. The Army's decision to implement 
a roughly 9 percent reduction at the Great Place is outrageous. I have 
serious concerns about the logic and analysis that went into this 
decision to reduce so many troops from Texas.
  Perhaps the most sickening part of the whole matter, however, is the 
damage these cuts will do to the soldiers and their families who will 
be asked to leave the Army after decades of sacrifice in time of war. 
In the coming days, I will be pressing the Army for clarification on 
their analysis and justification for their decisions.
  This Nation can do better.

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