Guardsmen Tours of Duty Questioned

[struggle4progress]

January 17, 2005

Louisiana's two U.S. senators, one Republican and one Democrat, are questioning the Pentagon's practice of calling national guard soldiers to active duty for repeated year-long tours of duty on the front lines in Iraq.

Faced by the recent deaths of eight Louisiana guardsmen in Iraq, senators Mary Landrieu and David Vitter say military brass relies too heavily on the guard.

Landrieu, a Democrat, says the military is stretching the guard to the breaking point.

Republican Vitter says the military should have a one-year maximum for guard members on active duty. <snip>

http://www.klfy.com/Global/story.asp?S=2819315

[rkc3]

1. Why do Landrieu and Vitter hate freedom?

[alfredo]

2. Because bush's version of Freedom

looks too much like fascism.

[BikeWriter]

4. They are traitors to the cause..

...of world domination in the name of freedom! </end sarcasm>

[jody]

3. It's past time for congress to debate the efficacy of having

state guard (militia) troops take a dual enlistment in the National Guard.

Congress needs to go back to the basics for our militia as defined in our Constitution " To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repeal Invasions; To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;"

That was clear when our Constitution was ratified but it became confusing with the National Defense Act of 1916 and SCOTUS later approved dual enlistment in both state guards (militias) and National Guard.

[damntexdem]

5. Any tour of duty in Iraq should be questioned.

But perhaps this is a start.