Cruz's military buildup dwarfs other candidates' proposals

[bigbadjohn45]

Ted Cruz said the Army must be built up to give the U.S. military a capability that can not be duplicated by special operators. (AP Photo)


Cruz's military buildup dwarfs other candidates' proposals

By Jacqueline Klimas (@jacqklimas) • 2/16/16 12:37 PM

Sen. Ted Cruz on Tuesday proposed the largest military build up of any of the Republicans vying to be president. The plan features growth in numbers of troops, airplanes and ships.

The Texas Republican talked about how he would build a military with "more tooth, less tail" if elected as the next commander in chief. The plan also far exceeds the administration's request for fiscal 2017.

Cruz would build up the active duty Army to 525,000 soldiers. The Army's troop level in 2016 was about 475,000 soldiers, but is planning to draw down in fiscal 2017 to 460,000 and an eventual goal of 450,000 soldiers by the end of fiscal 2018.

Cruz said the Army must be built up to give the U.S. military a capability that can not be duplicated by special operators.

"The president must stop his recent rush to mass produce special operations forces. The president is doing this in order to send smaller teams of warfighters to conduct critical operations so he can claim there are no conventional boots on the ground," Cruz wrote in his strategy. "Our special forces are the finest fighting units in the world, but they cannot be mass produced and they are not an answer to our lack of conventional capacity."

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush both recommended an active-duty Army made up of 490,000 soldiers, which would reverse the 40,000 in cuts planned to be in full effect by the end of fiscal 2018.

Cruz would also grow the total active-duty strength of the military to 1.4 million. The administration in its fiscal 2017 budget request asked to cut the total active strength by about 19,000 troops to 1.28 million.

In addition to growing the number of personnel, Cruz would also grow the number of platforms available to the military. He said the Air Force needs 6,000 total airplanes, up from about 5,472 planned for fiscal 2017.

He would also grow the Navy to "at least" 350 ships. The Navy has 280 ships and is on track to grow to 287 ships in fiscal 2017. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus has spent his entire tenure as leader of the Navy pushing the service to surpass 300 ships by 2020, a goal he said the service will meet.

Rubio would build up to 323 ships, the lower end recommended by a bipartisan panel in 2014 that said the Navy needs 323-346 ships to meet its mission.

Cruz and Rubio would both add a carrier strike group to the Navy's capability, going from 11 to 12.

 

[bigbadjohn45]

And the endorsements keep piling up:

Medal of Honor Recipient Dakota Meyer Endorses Ted Cruz for President
Cruz News | February 16

HOUSTON, Texas – Today, the Cruz for President campaign announced the endorsement of Medal of Honor recipient and United States Marine, Sergeant Dakota Meyer. Sgt. Meyer was awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration awarded by the U.S. government in September of 2011 in recognition of his extraordinary valor, serving in Afghanistan. Meyer will be joining Cruz on the trail in South Carolina today for several events.

Meyer is the third living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War, and the first living United States Marine in 41 years to be honored. A school-trained sniper and highly skilled Marine infantryman, Sgt. Meyer deployed twice to combat duty. On September 8, 2009, during a six-hour firefight, without regard for his own personal safety, Sgt. Meyer repeatedly braved enemy fire in Afghanistan to find and save fellow members of his team. Wounded by shrapnel, Sgt. Meyer entered the kill zone numerous times to evacuate his fellow Marines and soldiers along with the Afghan soldiers.

“This election is a turning point for our country,” said Meyer. “In these dangerous times we need a strong, principled conservative in the White House. We need a Commander-in-Chief who works with our allies and makes it known that certain actions against the United States and its allies will not be tolerated. I am confident that Ted Cruz has the ability and resolve to be Commander-in-Chief. His record of standing up and fighting for what he believes in shows that he is not someone who buckles under pressure. Ted is ready to led this country – and I look forward to help uniting conservatives and veterans behind this campaign.”

“Dakota is a man of great courage and principle,” said Cruz. “He has served our country dutifully and honorably as a Sergeant in the Marines. Dakota understands the extreme impact this election has on the future of this country. We need to restore America’s leadership in the world at a time when Obama’s foreign policy has put America and it’s national security interests in jeopardy. I am honored to have Dakota’s support and have him as part of our team to help win the White House in 2016.”

Sgt. Dakota Meyer completed his active duty in 2010 and now serves in the Individual Ready Reserve of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Since returning to civilian life, Sgt. Meyer continues to work to tell the stories of the Marines with whom he served.