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the sum of the individual parts. If one of our fish buds screwed up, we all screwed up.
And we all paid the price. The fish year was about breaking us down, and remaking us
into a single, cohesive unit. We learned to trust each other in the face of adversity, and
built relationships that have lasted to this very day.
My best friends remain the men I met there when I was just 18.
At the Citadel, you have a legendary esprit de corps, and traditions that rival any
military institution in the country from the symbolism of the Citadel ring to the
memorization of Knob Knowledge to the cannons fired in the direction of VMI on
Parade Day.
The Citadel cadets take a commission go on to become the best of the best, the
professional officers that compose the greatest fighting force on the face of the earth.
In a few months, some of you will join the long gray line, as your days in the Corps will
become a memory. And many of you will be commissioned as officers in the United
States Military.
In recent years, our leaders have painted a fictional picture of the state of our military,
and the challenges we face as a country.
America deserves better. You deserve better.
If you choose to wear the uniform of our nation, you deserve the truth about the
realities you will face, however unpleasant.
At no time in the last 25 years has the world been more dangerous. And because of it,
some of you will be called upon to put your lives at risk.
How and where is tough to predict. A little over a year ago Americans had never heard
of ISIS. Today ISIS has declared a caliphate over an area the size of Great Britain.
We cant predict what threats will emerge in the years ahead anymore than we knew on
September 10th of 2001 that our nation would be attacked the next day, that 3,000 of
our citizens would die, and that America would go to war for more than a dozen years,
taking the lives of 97 servicemen and women from South Carolina, including 20
a grave escalation of the threat posed to the one vibrant democracy in the Middle East:
Israel.
The presidents negotiations with Iran have served to legitimize not limit their
nuclear ambitions.
Should I run for president, and be so fortunate to be elected, one of my first actions in
office would be to invalidate the presidents Iran agreement, which jeopardizes the
safety and security of the free world.
He says it prevents a nuclear Iran. Just the opposite, this agreement enables it. And no
agreement is better than a bad agreement.
President Obama has the dubious distinction of being the first president whose
attempts to end two wars have made the world more dangerous. His agreement with
Iran will only further destabilize the Middle East.
The next president will inherit the chaos of the current Administration. And this will put
a great strain on our military resources.
But we must be truthful with the American People about the state of disrepair of our
military.
Our military is being decimated by major budget cuts at the tail end of two grueling
wars. Because of the failed leadership of both parties who treated our defense forces
as a pawn in a budgetary game of chicken our armed forces are depleted, our
military infrastructure is aging, and our technology advantages are being severely
challenged.
The last time the Administration did a serious review of what is required for our nations
defense was in the form of then-Secretary Robert Gates 2012 budget, which said we
needed to increase defense spending by close to one trillion dollars over ten years.
There is bipartisan consensus behind that number. But it is much harder to get
bipartisan action.
The Republican-led Congress is making some progress on increasing defense
spending. Yet defense spending in the current budget is still insufficient.
If I were president today, I would reframe the entire defense debate from what do we
have leftover to spend on defense, to what must we spend to keep America safe.
Consider the following facts: Our nuclear infrastructure is aging. Yet, the
Administrations budgets have cut funding for nuclear modernization below the level
President Obama promised when he was seeking support for the New START treaty.
His budgets cut missile defense spending at a time when potential adversaries are
beefing up their offensive capacity.
We have the smallest Army since 1940. In the last three years, the Armys strength has
been cut by 100,000 soldiers. The Air Force has fared no better. We are down to only
one fighter, the F-35, in production, and assets like the A-10s are being retired purely
because of sequestration. Less than half of the Air Forces squadrons are fully ready.
Only half of the Marine Corps non-deployed units have sufficient personnel,
equipment, and training.
In an era of historic debt, the Department of Defense like every government agency
should eliminate waste. I am convinced we could save over $100 billion through
reforms to the military procurement process. But savings from procurement alone will
not fund our nations defense needs.
I agree with the Heritage Foundation, which wrote in 2013, that the shrinking military
budget is a symptom of the growing federal debt rather than a solution to itthat the
readiness shortfalls caused by the recent cuts will cost far more to remedy than they
have savedand that, in the current global environment, American weakness is
contributing to a rising tide of conflict that will undermine economic growth.
It is time for a debate about the state of our military, and its historic underfunding.
It is time to tell the truth to the American People that leaders of both parties have gutted
our defenses because they refused to impose spending discipline on other areas of
government.
It is time to get real about the fact that while our enemies are building ships, we are
reducing the size of our fleet. That while fanatics are growing their armies, ours is at
The relative stability of the Eisenhower and Reagan years prove this very point. The
instability of the Obama years prove it just as well.
In order to fund our defense needs, it is imperative that we launch a new era of
economic growth. Our success abroad is directly tied to our success at home.
We are in an era of slow economic growth because government has grown too large,
regulations have grown too intrusive, and the president has prioritized part-time work
over full-time positions. The fact is we have 750,000 fewer full-time jobs in America
today than we had at the start of the recession.
We need to reduce taxes and regulations, and bring prosperity to Main Street and not
just Wall Street.
If we do, we will not only grow the economy, but also tax revenue revenue needed to
invest in our national security.
I have spoken about realities we must confront. But let me say a few words about the
men and women we call upon to confront them.
America is blessed. We have the most professional military in the world. For most of
our history, it has been an all-volunteer force. We attract to the military great patriots
who love our country, and who serve it with honor and distinction.
As a former captain in the Air Force, I know the global good done by those who wear
the uniform of our country.
As a former governor, I am acutely aware of the sacrifice made by our soldiers, sailors,
airmen and our marines. At the height of the surge in Iraq, I must have sent a letter,
made a phone call, attended a funeral, or visited a military hospital every week to pay
my respects to the bereaved families, or to visit a warrior wounded on the field of battle.
I traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan to visit our troops in their respective theaters of war.
The single greatest factor in creating a world safe for freedom is the heroism of men
and women who have worn the uniform, and who wear it today.
At the forefront of a resurgent America will be graduates of this great institution. The
men and women of the Citadel are proud patriots. You run to the sound of the guns,
and never walk away from a worthy fight. You are our greatest ambassadors for
freedom. And freedom needs you now more than ever.
Thank you.
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