The Trump administration’s plan to reduce troop numbers in Germany has faced enormous backlash in Washington from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. On Wednesday, members of the House Armed Services Committee grilled Pentagon officials on the matter and expressed their disapproval of the plan.
The Pentagon announced a plan to drawdown the number of troops from 36,000 to about 24,000. Pentagon officials have said about half of these troops will be redeployed in Europe, and the other half will be sent home. But during Wednesday’s hearing, Pentagon officials could not give enough detail on where these troops will be headed to satisfy the committee.
Acting Defense Undersecretary for Policy James Anderson said he could not offer much detail on the troop movement because he was not involved in the original decisions, and because the planning is still ongoing. Committee chairman Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) said, “The level of detail that we’re getting here is just not acceptable.”
Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-TX) said the president was likely sold on the plan by “a couple of staffers in the White House [who] clearly hadn’t thought through the consequences.”
Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-AL) invoked the Russian threat. “From a layperson’s point of view, it looks like we’ve reduced our troop presence in Europe at a time that Russia is actually becoming more of a threat,” Byrne said. “It looks like we’re pulling back, and I think that bothers a lot of us.”
A common criticism of Trump’s plan to withdraw troops from Germany is that it benefits Russia. But since the plan was announced, the US has taken steps to move troops closer to Russia, including establishing a permanent military presence in Poland.
In an interview with Fox News back in August, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said the troop movement would “deter” Russia. “We are moving many troops further east, closer to Russia’s border, to deter them,” Esper said.
You know, the military stationed there itself doesn’t like the idea of going home to some place in Georgia or Texas.- losing overseas bonuses, and an European atmosphere in the process. Can you imagine the anxiety of some old soldier, married to a German national contemplating life without a PX or commissary or base medical access? Never mind that Hitler has been gone for 75 years – our German bases are ESSENTIAL.
Who gives a shit? It’s not a damn vacation. They’re only ESSENTIAL for neocon geopolitical interests.
Decade after decade of bear bating McCarthyism https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/20bcc0366964fa568d2a844e54544272c2047b6783ca007881fdea15bb34a793.jpg has gotten me sea sick to say the least. $ is all it is.
It’s like these idiots actually think 12,000 troops is the difference between Russia deciding whether they want to invade or not. As idiotic as Esper is thinking a portion of those troops moving closer to Russia is a determent, even if there was something to deter. Is everybody as fucking stupid as Mitt Romney?
Bring everyone home Now!
Deter Russia, but embolden NATO.
The USA will have it’s fall and it will come sooner than I ever thought. Will it come with a bang or a whimper??
Do Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-AL) and others really think Russia is a threat? Have they looked into the matter? And even if the do, is it up to them to decide on how troops are deployed? Or is his job to prevent a redeployment that the Pentagon is only pretending to want as a way to calm the anti-military faction of Congress? It is very hard to see what is really going on here.
the blood thirsty amerikan people will never renounce imperialism until their empire collapses in a few years and they find their burgers are half sawdust GMO, steroids