US faces most severe recruiting crisis: US Congressman
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US Congressman Mike Waltz stresses that the US army keeps shrinking, describing the situation as the "most severe recruiting crisis in its history."
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Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., questions Kimberly Cheatle, Director, US Secret Service, during a House Committee on July 22, 2024. (AP)
US Congressman Mike Waltz reported on Wednesday that under President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the US military is facing the most severe recruiting crisis in its history.
"We have a military now under their watch that has a recruiting crisis, the worst since Vietnam, the worst in the history of the all-volunteer military," Walz said during a press briefing at Trump Tower in Chicago.
The United States now has the smallest army since World War II and a navy that is outnumbered by China's, the Congressman added, stressing that China is now tripling its nuclear arsenal.
Last year, during a congressional hearing on April 20, US Army Secretary Christine Wormuth warned that the army is currently facing recruiting troubles and won't be meeting its goal for the year if the situation does change, further cautioning that structure cuts may be possible.
"I'm suggesting that the kinds of structure we need for the army of 2030 are different than what we needed in the last 20 years, and if we don't turn our recruiting situation around, I am concerned that we may have to make cuts to the Force’s structure," she relayed to the US House Armed Services Committee.
"I think it's going to be a challenge [to meet the recruitment goal for 2023]."
According to the Heritage Foundation's 2023 Index of US Military Strength, the US military is currently "weak" and "at growing risk of not being able to meet the demands of defending America's vital national interests," which should be heavily alarming for Washington, as it is showing dwindling military strength, down from "marginal" in 2021.
This came as reports showed the size of the US Army has been decreasing rapidly over the past few years. In 2021, it had 482,000 personnel and in 2023, it had 473,000.
