Making
America Great Again with A Larger Force: Why Presidential Candidates are
Calling the Military Weak
The 2016 Presidential race has had many spectacular
and quote worthy moments. At this stage, the Republican Party nominee pool has
shrunk to three candidates: Donald Trump, Senator Cruz and Governor Kasich.
Defense and national security has been a hot topic, with issues such as ISIS
and border security as some of the main issues. Front-runner Donald Trump has
most consistently described the U.S. armed forces as “a disaster,” “very weak”
and steadily “being decimated.” The question arises as to why Mr. Trump and
many others in the party continue to exclaim to the public that the US military
forces are weak.
In their view, candidates lament Obama’s neglecting of
military forces by both his use of the military and the ever-increasing
military budget cuts that are facing the military. Fears that military budget
cuts create ill preparedness is seen in Governor Chris Christie’s comment: “The
military is not ready. …We need to rebuild our military, and this president has
let it diminish to a point where tinpot dictators like the mullahs in Iran are
taking our Navy ships.” These fears are not valid because the majority of
Americans still believe that the US military is superior to any other national
military. Additionally, US defense spending of $710 billion a year trumps the
military budgets of the next 7 countries combined, with the closest being China
at $143 billion.
Despite budget cuts and decreasing size of the
military, shifting foreign policy goals and exiting the wars of Afghanistan and
Iraq naturally decreases the size of the standing military. Ever-improving
military technologies and our reliance on new innovations decreases the need
for large standing militaries. Candidates are valid in their fear of the
hazards of ISIS and international terrorism, but increasing the size of the
military would be unnecessary to face those international. Additionally, calling
the American military forces weak is unjust to the technological advancements
the United States has over every other national military. Presidential
candidate’s fears of non-state actors is understandable, but using discouraging
language is unfair to current military advancements that call for a smaller
standing force. Sources: Military Times; Foreign Policy; National Priorities.org.
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