WWNC – The Biden administration has consistently shown over the past 20 months that they wouldprefer to revert to the Obama foreign policy of leading from behind than to lead from the front with force. Last was made very evident this week when the Chinese Communist Party, led by Xi Jinping, stated their intention to “reunify” with Taiwan on a much speedier timeline and possibly using force. What action was taken by the Biden administration? They simply dismissed it and carried on.
An announcement of actual, practical efforts to thwart the CCP’s aspirations was something that didn’t happen. The Biden administration worsens this mistake by giving China and our other enemies hazardous signals by allowing our country’s military readiness to decline to risky levels.
Our overall military strength is rated as “poor” in the Heritage Foundation’s Index of Military Strength for 2023, which was released this week. Our military, which continues to be the strongest in the world, is not weak as a result. The report’s objective is to evaluate how well our military can protect and advance our national interests.
When we receive a “weak” grade, it suggests that we are unable to discourage our enemies or effectively accomplish our security goals. This report should serve as a much-needed wake-up call since it will take time for our military to be rebuilt to meet America’s security demands.
We have a lot we can accomplish to achieve our long-term objectives. We spent more than 5% of our GDP on defense each year during the Reagan years, when our military was strong enough to confront and deter the Soviet Union.
Currently, we only spend roughly 3% of our budget on preparation, which is insufficient. If we want to confront and dissuade the Chinese Communist Party and those like Russian President Vladimir Putin, we must go back to 5% spending levels. This doesn’t include tax increases; rather, it entails reallocating federal spending priorities so that our government can appropriately “provide for the common defense,” which is the first obligation set forth in our Constitution.
The way we build our weaponry also has to be changed. Every branch of the armed forces experiences procurement catastrophes, which are frequently caused by political forces and profit-driven interests that have little interest in actually developing and fielding effective weapons. In order to avoid the bloated Pentagon bureaucracy, this procedure must more directly include the armed services, who will utilize the weapons.
But our military also faces a number of immediate difficulties that need to be resolved immediately. America’s military is experiencing a recruitment issue across all of the branches of the armed forces. During the last years of the Cold War, I served in the Army, which fell approximately 15,000 soldiers shy of its recruitment target. Only by drawing from their delayed-entry lists do the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps anticipate to either fall short of or just meet their recruitment targets. This indicates that in the coming years, these branches will have a harder time achieving their goals.
What could be the cause of this recruitment problem? The strict COVID-19 policies of the Biden administration have been a significant contributor. Since August 2021, when Biden’s mandatory vaccine policy went into effect, over 1,700 sailors have been fired from the Navy for failing to comply with it; thousands more could follow soon.
Over the next two years, the Army National Guard plans to release 14,000 men. Even though President Joe Biden said more than a month ago that “the pandemic is finished,” his onerous COVID-19 requirements for the military are still in effect. Thousands of brave men and women have had their military careers ruined by them, and thousands more are in danger.
Then, of course, there are the progressive policies and training that the Pentagon, under the guidance of Vice President Biden, is implementing across our military forces. By substituting “less objectionable” phrases for “you guys,” “terrorists,” and “mom and dad,” Air Force cadets are being taught to avoid making “microaggressions.” Young people who are bright and brave enlist to fight for and defend their country instead receive lectures about race, gender identity, and pronoun usage.
The power of the American military is the biggest and most reliable check on the ambitions of the CCP and Putin’s aggression. We lose the power to discourage our enemies if we allow our military forces to stagnate and if we are unable to meet their challenges.
Under Biden, America and the rest of the globe are at risk of a disastrous war and a devastating battle.
