Lack of citizen soldiers diminishes military readiness, Reserve official tells Post 20

Without citizen soldiers -- the National Guard and Reserves -- "we can't go to war," retired U.S. Army Gen. Jeff Phillips told National Press Club American Legion Post 20 at its meeting Thursday, Jan. 12.

Phillips, executive director of the Reserve Organization of America (ROA), warned that "our military readiness is in peril" because of the lack of citizens willing to volunteer for service in the armed forces. One consequence of low enlistment is heavy reliance on part-time soldiers who now make up nearly 40% of the military, including 53% of the Army.

ROA, formerly the Reserve Officers Association, nearly disbanded a decade ago but is now open to all ranks and has launched new initiatives to support adequate training and equipping reserve forces on which the Pentagon is increasingly reliant. Phillips said the association will soon be announcing support for reinstating service personnel who were discharged for refusing to receive COVID-19 vaccine shots. It has lobbied for expanding medical and retirement benefits and for employer support for deployed reservists.

Phillips said "two decades of unsuccessful wars" is partly to blame for low recruitment. He said Congress should approve a declaration of war before future such commitments. He also expressed concern about reliance on costly and complex weapons systems at the expense of conventional forces in the Pentagon's $900 billion budget.

The ROC and the National Press Club's American Legion Post have a shared history in that both were established at the urging of Gen. John J. Pershing, commander of U.S. forces in Europe during World War I and an associate member of the Club. Both the Club and ROC had their organizational meetings in what was then the newly reopened Willard Hotel.

In other business, Post Commander Tom Young said the Post will sponsor a special tour of the newly established National Museum of the United States Army at Fort Belvoir when at least 10 persons sign up to participate. All Club members will be invited to visit the museum, which tells the story of the Army since 1775. It occupies 84 acres of the Fairfax County, Virginia, base. Tour sign-up details will be announced shortly.

The Post's next meeting is scheduled for March 15, with a guest speaker to be announced. Speaker portions of Post meetings are open to all Club members, in person and via Zoom.