“Last week, Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth announced a plan to cut 5% of the U.S. Army’s total strength, or roughly 24,000 soldiers. This is a remarkably large reduction given the state of global affairs, which includes increasing aggression from all of America’s adversaries and two full-scale wars involving allies.
This number, when accounting for the addition of 7,500 cybersecurity and air defense billets, corresponds to the Army’s recruitment shortfall — roughly 15,000 soldiers a year for the past three years. Perhaps Wormuth, the Army’s top political leader, is responding to politics and is purposefully lowering the bar in hopes of finally reaching a recruiting goal during President Joe Biden’s administration.
The cut itself is not the most alarming aspect, as there are certainly rational arguments to be made about the overall size and efficiency of the force. But the details of the cut defy logic and prudence. Wormuth and her team of advisers have elected to cut Special Operations Forces, armor, and engineers, which are some of the most in-demand warfighting capabilities in Israel and Ukraine.”
Read Garretts full piece here.
