Operations in Iraq Are Leaving the States Vulnerable

[madfloridian]

Not long ago, Bill Nelson raised head to speak out about this....but he hasn't said anymore on the subject. He said Florida was vulnerable to hurricanes without access to the National Guard equipment.

Then there was an editorial about the situation.

Florida National Guard situation is dire....hurricane season coming.

A lot in the post, but this part jumped out. We don't even have access to the "stored" equipment in case of emergency. It is commanded by the Pentagon.

In the interim, however, Nelson is hoping to broker an agreement between the state and the Defense Department that would allow the Florida Guard to use the equipment stockpiled around the state by the U.S. Army Reserve units, which are commanded by the Pentagon.

This article from the Center for American Progress points out how the shortage of equipment and manpower affected New Orleans after Katrina.

Operations in Iraq Are Leaving the States Vulnerable

When Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast almost two years ago, at least 35 percent of the Louisiana National Guard was in Iraq. That meant that personnel and equipment—like radios, trucks, and helicopters—were unavailable for conducting relief operations. A confidential Pentagon report written soon after the disaster stated that, in addition to other government failures, “a major factor in the delayed response to the hurricane aftermath was that the bulk of the Louisiana and Mississippi National Guard was deployed in Iraq.”

..."Hurricane Katrina intensified a dialogue that had already begun about the National Guard’s role in operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Comptroller General David Walker testified before the House Committee on Government Reform on the Army National Guard’s alarming condition soon after Katrina hit, saying, “...the preparedness of non-deployed units for future missions is declining, and strategy of transferring large numbers of equipment and personnel among units is showing signs of increased stress.”

Even in the face of a tragedy like Hurricane Katrina, the Pentagon and the Department of Defense have not addressed the National Guard’s readiness crisis. Walker cited an estimate in his testimony that the Guard’s non-deployed units had only 34 percent of their essential war-fighting equipment as of July 2005. In September of 2006, the Government Accountability Office estimated that the Army National Guard had only 30 percent of essential equipment on-hand at home. And according to a recent Congressional Commission report, 88 percent of National Guard units have less than half of the equipment required to perform missions at home.

If another major natural or man-made disaster takes place on U.S. soil, it is unclear that the states have the capacity for an efficient, effective response.

Governor Crist is not being heard on this effectively. Here is one of the few things I can find about what he has said. Not enough, and just wrong.

Make sure National Guard is prepared for hurricane season

Nelson, who had toured Guard facilities in Jacksonville and Orlando, said on April 6, "Problems from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have stretched Florida National Guard further than ever before, leaving it without all the resources it should have for responding to a domestic crisis."

Gov. Charlie Crist, however, said that Florida Guard units have enough manpower and equipment to cope with the hurricane season. Crist said he based that conclusion on the opinion of Gen. Douglas Burnett, head of the state's Guard.

"The Florida National Guard is ready and able," Burnett told the Palm Beach Post. "This summer we will have more equipment than last summer."

Sorry, Charlie. You are sounding like the loyal Republican we hoped you would not be. Wrong answer.

Too quickly our state has forgottne...Charlie, Frances, Jeanne in Central Florida within 6 weeks of each. Also Ivan in North Florida. And don't forget Wilma.

[cliss]

1. The National Guard was NEVER

supposed to be used to fight a war. Especially not a foreign war, on foreign soil.
And yet, most of them are there, fighting in a war they never presumed when they signed up for service. And here they are, on their 3rd, some even 4th tour of duty.

And yes, the states (which the N. Guard was SUPPOSED to protect) are increasingly vulnerable. This is because our weather patterns are getting more erratic, with weird storms striking, hurricanes, flooding, mud slides.

[madfloridian]

2. Every state is vulnerable.

It's a dangerous situation.

I want to hear from my governor about this. No spin, just truth.

[SammyWinstonJack]

3. bu$hco will just hire Blackwater to fill the void left by sending the states' NG troops to fight in

their oily wars.