Barack Obama addresses the National Guard crisis
From Stars and Stripes, Interview With Senator Barack Obama, Leo Shane III, August 11, 2008
I think it’s also important that we return our National Guard and reserve to its traditional mission, which is primarily one of homeland security.Our National Guardsmen and reservists take enormous pride in the work they’ve done. But we have put an enormous burden on them. Our National Guards here back home are not adequately trained to meet a potential catastrophe here in the United States. We saw that during Katrina. We saw some evidence of that during the tornadoes in Kansas. There are a whole bunch of units all across the country that essentially have left all their equipment behind, back in Iraq. So there’s going to be an important reset function for the next administration.
>>More on VFA’s work with the National Guard>>Read the full interview with Sen. Obama
*For more information or interviews, please contact Adrienne Willis, Director of Communications at 202-557-7509 or by email at awillis@veteransforamerica.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Veterans for America Applauds Focus Given to National Guard at Convention
August 25, 2008
Veterans for America (VFA) is encouraged by the decision of Sen. Barack Obama to invite the father-in-law, Mike Fisher, of an Indiana National Guardsman to address the assembled delegates of the opening night of the Democratic National Convention 2008.
The use of the National Guard has reached levels not seen since World War II. At least 35 states, including Mr. Fisher’s home state of Indiana, have experienced their largest National Guard deployments in over 60 years. Indiana’s 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) is halfway through its third tour, the most of any frontline unit in the Guard. Members of the National Guard who had been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan are 25% more likely to develop PTSD and face increasing likelihood of alcohol and drug abuse. Quite clearly, the Guard has not been adequately trained or prepared for the combat pressures they have been asked to step up to.
VFA applauds Sen. Barack Obama for recognizing in his recent interview with Stars and Stripes that the Guard belongs closer to home, but stresses that the current condition and misuse of the National Guard is an urgent non-partisan issue. The next President of the United States, regardless of party, must address the problems that confront the National Guard in this crucial period. Bobby Muller, president of VFA, notes: “The overuse of the Guard is a national issue that cuts straight to the heart of our security and to the heart of every American who cares about our military.”