News>Welsh: Sequestration will 'undermine' readiness
Photos
Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III testifies with a panel of Defense Department witnesses on Capitol Hill, Feb. 12, 2013, during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee about the potential impact of sequestration and a full-year continuing resolution. (U.S. Air Force photo/Scott M. Ash)
Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III testifies with a panel of Defense Department witnesses on Capitol Hill, Feb. 12, 2013, during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee about the potential impact of sequestration and a full-year continuing resolution. (U.S. Air Force photo/Scott M. Ash)
2/13/2013 - WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Unprecedented budget factors have placed the nation's defense strategy in jeopardy, senior Department of Defense leaders told the Senate Armed Services Committee Feb. 12.
During his opening remarks, the chief of staff of the Air Force stressed the severity of the current fiscal situation.
"Sequestration threatens to carve crucial capability from America's Air Force, with alarming and immediate effects on people, readiness and infrastructure, and, eventually, on modernization," said Gen. Mark A. Welsh III. "If it occurs, it will significantly undermine your Air Force's readiness and responsiveness today."
The common theme of the day was attempting to quantify the relationship between risk and sequestration.
"If sequestration occurs, it will severely limit our ability to implement our defense strategy," said Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "It will put the nation at greater risk of coercion. And, it will break faith with the men and women who serve this nation in uniform."
Unless sequestration is averted, the impacts on the Air Force include budget cuts resulting in cancelling about 200,000 flying hours this year. This includes training and non-support of combatant commander requirements like theater security packages and continuous bomber presence missions.
Welsh went on to emphasize the impacts sequestration will have on readiness.
"Roughly two-thirds of our active-duty combat Air Force units will curtail home station training, beginning in March, and will drop below acceptable readiness levels by mid-May," said Welsh. "Most will be completely non-mission capable by July."
Sequestration was delayed until March 1 by a bill passed in January. If implemented, it would mandate about $500 billion in across-the-board defense spending cuts over 10 years in addition to $487 billion in cuts mandated over that period by the 2011 Budget Control Act.
The Defense Department is, and will continue to be, part of the nation's economic recovery, the chairman said, but to do so requires budget certainty.
"Finally, we need the flexibility to transfer and reprogram money to our highest priorities," the chairman said. "Readiness loses when major portions of the budget are untouchable. Everything needs to be on the table."
Failing to act is a choice in itself, Dempsey said, "one that will eventually require a progressive contraction of security commitments around the world and a less proactive approach to protecting our interests."
If the budget uncertainty isn't addressed, Dempsey said, the nation's defense options will be reduced and risk will increase in turn. "Our military power will be less credible, because it will be less sustainable. Now, we are only a few days away from making that a reality," he added.
"Our nation, our service members and their families expect us to do better," the chairman said. "Most importantly, a turbulent world that relies on American leadership demands that we do better."
(Staff Sgt. David Salanitri, Air Force Public Affairs Agency, contributed to this story.)
Comments
2/15/2013 10:40:29 AM ET @Anna Ramstein please let me know where 6-12 room houses are that cheap where one person can pay rent for the whole house. Even with overseas housing allowances you're gonna be paying out of pocket if you're the only one paying for it while you're getting single rate BAH.
AS, CONUS
2/15/2013 9:17:05 AM ET To Airman Earth Wrong on many counts. I do not doubt that enlisted men and women may feel more effect of a civilian furlough on their day to day operations and could bear some of the load. But to imply that these would be paid days off for the civilian civil service employees is totally incorrect. This will account to approximately 20percent lost wages - pay reduction for the six month period.To imply that most civilian workers are over paid and under worked is also off the mark and very disrespectful to many of us in Civil Service. Shame on you for that.
RC, GA
2/15/2013 9:03:27 AM ET We have to cut the DoD buget in order to fund the welfare state. Each day over 11K are added to the food stamp roles.
Wayne, Maxwell AFB AL
2/15/2013 2:07:36 AM ET If Sequestration does happen it will mostly affect the enlisted men and women. The enlisted will have to pick up the slack if a furlough is implemented. It would equate to an extra day off for the already overpaid and under worked civilian force. I know that there are some civilians who are absolutely critical to our day to day operations but those are rare.
Aiman, Earth
2/14/2013 2:57:50 PM ET I dislike how the military budget and pay is usually the first bargaining chip when things go wrong. As a Senior Airman I brown bag my meals and snacks to work. Why can't congress do the same Why don't we start cutting some funds there If a Senator wants lunch he should pay out of pocket like we all do. I feel like we are looking for money in all the wrong places. We need to sit down and really look at where the money is going beause I assure you the military is not the cause of these problems. Don't get me wrong everyone can afford to tighten their belts around here but it should be fair and even across all areas of the government.
SB, Malmstrom AFB
2/14/2013 2:46:11 PM ET I do not understand what point Ann Ramstein is trying to make. It should not be the governments responsibility if you choose to get married and have 10 kids. A single military person should not be penalized. Everyone should get paid the same based on rank not marital status.
Candy, CO
2/14/2013 2:37:07 PM ET You know when my family needs to save money during hard times we STOP spending it on stuff we want so there is more to spend on what we need What the country NEEDS are the men and women in uniform doing thier jobs What we DON'T need are countless BRAND NEW builings under construction at every AF facility around the country replacing structures that are barely 20 years old Wanna save money Take us back to the old days when we used to DETAIL airmen to maintain our real property and grounds. Quit hiring contractors to clean cook mow gaurd train educate maintain etc. LET US DO OUR JOBS
Ski, Florida
2/14/2013 2:03:55 PM ET DC all the items you mention come from non-appropriated funds which includes money paid for lodging as well as morale welfare and recreation funds from the base exchanges. The sequester by definition only affects those areas funded by appropriated funds.
PB, US
2/14/2013 12:51:06 PM ET Isn't this how we won the cold war making the old USSR spend too much money iI bet they are laughing their asses off
Old Guy, USA
2/14/2013 10:39:09 AM ET It will do way more than 'undermine' readiness. It will start an avalanche
Arctic Warrior, Colorado Springs
2/14/2013 9:58:14 AM ET A thought on how to start saving money Unproportional housing allowances... I have at least 8 single friends who have been living in huge expensive houses all by themselves 6-12 rooms--all paid for by tax dollars. Might I add they are hardly ever home because they work a lot. Put that next to a hard-working low or even moderate-income family in the US
Anna, Ramstein
2/14/2013 8:56:35 AM ET But we have to keep the mission critcal items such as cable in lodging internet in lodging cable and TV's in fitness centers staff carsall those posters flyers and banners printed with commanders vision statments and goals Tops in Blue and many-many other nice to have pet projects.
DC, South
2/14/2013 8:41:38 AM ET Non-supportcancel all the CODEL flights out of Andrews. Let them travel commercial. That'll get their attention.
RB, SATX
2/13/2013 10:24:34 AM ET He said we need the flexilbilty to transfer and reprogram money to our highest priorities...cheap talk when just recently he approved dropping millions on a NASCAR sponsorship. Someone is pulling the wool over his eyes and big time.
