The greatest threat to America's military

(Hint: It's the GOP.)

Driftglass pulls together a couple of news stories on the state of our military, which reveal that the U.S. National Guard is "$23 billion in the hole after five years of war and national disasters" and of our standing military, "the Army alone needs $17.1 billion to reset its force in 2007 and anticipates an annual yearly bill of $12 billion to $13 billion until two or three years after the Iraq war ends to reconstitute its equipment back to fighting form." In what I imagine will come as no surprise to anyone paying attention, Congress has not, of course, provided anything remotely close to the necessary funding.

One of Bush's key planks in 2000 was needing to rescue the military from its neglect under Democratic leadership, but the state of preparedness of our armed forces has worsened significantly in the last six years.

Bush told the Republican National Convention in 2000: "If called on by the commander-in-chief today, two entire divisions of the Army would have to report ... 'Not ready for duty, sir,'" he said.

"How many divisions will we have to report that way to that question today based on the reporting system, General Pace?" said Rhode Island Democrat Sen. Jack Reed.

Pace confirmed that two-thirds of the brigades in the Army would now report as not ready.

Insert your own grousing about tax cuts during a time of war here.

Says Drifty, "So we know what one problem clearly is: The armed forces are broke and on the verge of being broken. By Republicans. By the Party of God which is now, in effect, crying poormouth over having to find enough money to fund the military at the level it needs to if it wants to win the war in Iraq (whatever the fuck that means anymore), preserve the military, and be ready for future threats. It is that simple. So what are they willing to spend -- and spend lavishly -- on? Tax cuts for billionaire. Throwing money at men already wallowing in more cash that any thousand people would know what to do with."

There's more, oh so much more, at the link.