Political Quotes

“I am concerned, when I heard the other day the Secretary of Defense say that the United States military must prepare for more fighting, future wars against insurgents and militias, such as in Iraq and Afghanistan, rather than spend money and time preparing for conventional conflicts. Overemphasizing the Department's focus on training and equipment for counterinsurgency missions appears to be simply a rationalization of a short-term budget decision made in the waning months of this administration. I am worried because we have been saying over and over again, let's look beyond Iraq, let's make sure we get the military back to the position where it should be. These decisions have left the Armed Forces in a degraded state of readiness. They have let the facilities, which directly impact service personnel, quality of life, in disrepair. Every place we have gone we have seen the disrepair. They have left many defense acquisition programs broken or badly damaged.”