Porter Goss: “The result of having to do more with less, I think, is very plain to see. Declining morale and a military on the verge…”

“The result of having to do more with less, I think, is very plain to see. Declining morale and a military on the verge of being hollowed out confront us just at the time when we seem to have more demands on our military in so many other places. The solution seems simple, as even President Clinton's Secretary of Defense William Cohen admits when he said, "We have to find a way to either increase the size of our forces or decrease the number of our missions." I could not agree more. Earlier this year the commander of U.S. forces in Latin America, that would be General Charles Wilhelm, recommended we end our permanent troop presence in Haiti. In its place General Wilhelm recommends the periodic deployment of troops, as is the norm throughout the Western Hemisphere and the Caribbean. General Wilhelm's recommendation is sound on a number of counts, and I believe Congress should endorse it. Maintaining a permanent presence in Haiti unnecessarily puts our troops at risk.”