Let’s take a walk down memory lane and review the military service of our commanders in chief. George Washington was general of the armies during our Revolutionary War against the Brits. He did well.
Our man Abe Lincoln was a captain in the Illinois state militia and was involved in The Black Hawk War.
Let’s fast forward to Harry S. Truman. During World War I he was a commanding officer of a field artillery battery and retired as a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve.
What can you say about Ike except that he was one terrific American. Served as supreme allied commander in Europe during World War II as general of the Army.
We all remember PT-109, which was blown out of the water with our future president, John F. Kennedy, on board. He received the Navy and Marine Corps medal and a Purple Heart as a lieutenant in the Navy.
Lyndon Johnson received the Silver Star medal during World War II after the airplane he was riding in was attacked by enemy aircraft. Richard Nixon earned two Service Stars during World War II (1942-1945). Gerald Ford saw combat on USS Monterey during World War II (1942-1945 and discharged in 1946). Jimmy Carter was a lieutenant in the United States Navy, A submariner, I believe.
Ronald Reagan had stateside service during World War II (1942-1945) and was in the Army Reserve (1937-1942). George H.W. Bush was a lieutenant during World War II (1942-1945) and received the Distinguished Flying Cross. I remember seeing a video, during his race with Clinton, of him being picked up by a submarine after his plane crashed in the ocean doing battle with the enemy.
His son, George W. Bush, was a pilot with the Texas National Guard who served stateside during the Vietnam War.
I seem to remember a TV leftist anchor who tried to mock Bush’s service and his effort ended this loser’s TV career.
Now, we come to my two favorite commander in chiefs.
If you Google “president’s military service” you will see in the both the service and rank categories for Bill Clinton and Barack Obama the words “None” appear.
We must remember lover boy Clinton’s two major conquests. The first was an encounter with a young female intern in the Oval Office and the other was his destruction of an aspirin factory in which one dangerous night watchman was killed.
The commander in chief’s primary responsibility is to protect American citizens and America territory. During World War II we had well-defined enemies in Europe and Asia and well-defined land masses we had to attack.
Today, we have a well-defined enemy located throughout the world, including the U.S.A., whose desire is to kill, kill, kill and kill some more until we embrace their fanatical religion.
So, we must arm our troops to be prepared to handle any contingency.
But, what is Obama doing? In a July 26 Wall Street Journal article dealing with our military readiness it was stated, “Unless Congress reverses budget sequestration and restores three years’ worth of additional cuts, the Pentagon is in for more belt tightening.”
Three years’ worth of additional cuts under Obama.
The article continued, “The Navy will retire more ships over the next five years than it will build. The fleet now stands at about 285. (At the height of the post-Soviet ‘peace dividend’ era, it was 375). The Air Force is even worse off.
The U.S. has fewer than one-third the number of bombers it had during the Vietnam era. Troop numbers are also declining.
By the end of fiscal year 2014, active duty Army and Marine Corps personnel are set to decrease by about 13 percent and 10 percent, respectively, from 2010 levels.”
I guess this community organizer will protect America with millions of drones that he will control out of the Oval Office.
John Messina
East Williston
