Recently I spoke to more than 30 new AUSA chapter presidents during their training at the association’s headquarters. The energy and excitement they brought to the table was enormous. These men and women and the almost one hundred others – all volunteers - who lead AUSA chapters around the world are the bedrock of AUSA’s efforts to help tell our Army’s story.
AUSA uses its Resolutions Committee, composed of about a dozen folks representing the major constituencies of the association, to determine the issues on which we will focus during the next legislative year. Next month I will meet with the full committee chairman and subcommittee chairmen to give them my guidance on the major issues as I see them.
My criteria for issues are not new, and I have mentioned them in previous columns: those items of policy or budgetary action that will have impact on the prosecution of the war on terror; the readiness of the force; the well being of our Soldiers and their families and the continued momentum of Army Transformation – materiel, equipment, training, facilities. They define where we stand as an Association.
The issues relate to: people – Soldiers and their Families, Retirees, and Army Civilians - readiness and force transformation. Some of the major categories are closing the pay gap, keeping medical care fees and deductibles from rising, funding Wounded Warrior, post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury care and research initiatives as well as funding housing programs and expanding veteran, spousal and family member education and employment opportunities and the list goes on.
The size of the Army, and indeed the defense force as a whole, must be sufficient to accomplish our national security goals, and defense spending must be at least five percent of our gross domestic product. Acknowledgement of the radically changed role of our Reserve Component must result in redesigned structures, pay and benefits as well as retirement that reflect the way that segment of our defense establishment is now used.
Further, money must be available to reset (repair or replace) equipment for the Current Force and to complete the Future Combat Systems that will take the Army into the future as well as spin off new technologies and capabilities now for the Current Force to use. Operations and maintenance funds to allow completion of active and reserve missions as well as training dollars also must be available.
All of these issues have enormous impact on our Army, our Soldiers and families every day. The Resolutions Committee will weave these into the tapestry that becomes the Association’s legislative agenda.
Then, our members vote, through their chapters, on the final product thus creating the 2009 AUSA Resolutions which are published and provided to every member of Congress as well as opinion leaders in local communities and within the Army. The resolutions process is grassroots activity at its very best, and I am very proud of the volunteers who create it and make it an effective instrument of policy for AUSA. |