Charles Skelton: “before I make my remarks about the readiness of the Army and Marine Corps equipment, I would like you to share my…”

“before I make my remarks about the readiness of the Army and Marine Corps equipment, I would like you to share my thoughts on the recently released information of a possible plan for troop redeployment in Iraq. Let me say I am incensed that General Casey's recommendations to the President and Secretary Rumsfeld for possible force redeployments in the coming months were leaked by someone in the administration to The New York Times. The options presented to the President for the success of our operation there should not be on the front page of a major paper. Such a leak does not benefit considered deliberation of military operatives. It can only serve a political purpose. Members of the Congress overseeing the Department of Defense should have been kept informed of our senior military commander's best thinking in an appropriate forum. That said, I am pleased to hear that the Iraqis and the American people may be able to begin to see a correlation between increasing numbers and capability of Iraqi battalions and some reduction in American combat power. This is something that I have suggested for some time. This apparent consideration of options could not come at a better time, given the poor readiness posture of the Army and Marine Corps equipment. Over the last several years, we have seen readiness rates plummet as the operation tempo in Iraq has climbed.…”