Because when all is said and done, the Pentagon is prepared to spend its money on national security and winning in Iraq and Afghanistan, even as the Democrats seek to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory for their partisan political benefit.

The military plans to furlough civilian employees and cut all Army and Marine Corps bases to bare-bones operations early next year because of a funding impasse with Congress, according to a memo provided to Politico.

Democratic leaders accused the Bush administration of using scare tactics, and said they will not be strong-armed into giving the White House a blank check on the war.

In the memo, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates instructs the secretaries and of the Army and Navy to “start appropriate planning to reduce operations at all Army bases by mid-February of next year and all USMC bases by mid-March of next year.”

The plan would leave “bases … all but shut down, only able to provide the most basic safety and security measures for those who reside there,” Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell said at a briefing Tuesday afternoon.

“The most immediate impact will be felt next month, just before Christmas, in fact, when we'll begin notifying roughly 200,000 civilians and contractors that we can no longer afford their services; and that, absent additional funding, they will be furloughed, or temporarily laid off, within a matter of weeks,” Morrell said.

“It is imperative that lawmakers reconsider this matter as soon as possible and send the president supplemental funding legislation, free from objectionable policy provisions, in order to insure that we can continue to support our troops and their families, as well as protect our nation's security.”

Gates said he wants enough planning done by mid-December so the department “can begin appropriate notification of government civilian employees to be furloughed consistent with labor agreements.”

Amusingly enough, Senate Majority Leader Minority Follower Harry Reid dares to suggest that it is the President who is playing politics with the military. His every effort over the last year has been aimed at ensuring that the war in Iraq is lost so that the Democrats have a campaign issue to run on in 2008 -- and despite the undeniable successes in Iraq he continues to claim that America has lost there.

Of course, the Democrats keep demanding a timetable for retreat and surrender. I guess that ensuring that the troops get the funding they need to win the war is too much to ask of those who view an American victory as a blow to their partisan interests. When will they stop adhering to our enemies, and giving them aid and comfort?

Posted by: Greg at 01:29 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 462 words, total size 3 kb.