U.S.: Fire response not hurt by deployment of troops to wars

[unhappycamper]

U.S.: Fire response not hurt by deployment of troops to wars
By Lisa Burgess, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Thursday, October 25, 2007


ARLINGTON, Va. — The commitment of U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have not affected the Pentagon’s ability to direct personnel or supplies to the firefighting effort in California, according to military officials.

“I can tell you unequivocally that the ongoing warfighting activities in have had no negative effect at all with regard to our ability to provide sufficient forces to assist civilian authorities in fighting the wildfires,” Paul McHale, assistant secretary of defense for homeland defense, told Pentagon reporters Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Democratic California Sen. Barbara Boxer said she believed the state National Guard’s ability to fight the fires has been compromised because it is stretched too thin by the Iraq war.

But McHale said that “there is no manpower shortage in terms of actual firefighting activities,” noting that of the more than 17,000 Guardsmen currently available to fight the fires, only 1,500 been brought to active duty.

Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, said at the news conference that the Pentagon accounted for fire season when deciding which Reserve units to send overseas.

The 3,000 soldiers from California who are deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan “were carefully selected knowing that they would be away during the firefighting season,” Blum said.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=49763



uhc comment: Paul McHale was brought to Dod by Rummy --> http://www.govexec.com/features/0204hs/0204HS_exec17.htm

[RC]

1. Why does the word "Propaganda" come to mind when I read this?

[unhappycamper]

2. I had the same feeling here. n/t