(Westminster, CO)—Colorado Congressman Mark Udall (D-Eldorado Springs), a member of the House Armed Services Committee, released the following statement regarding President Bush’s support for increasing the end-strength of the U.S. Army:
"I am pleased that the president has belatedly acknowledged our need to rebuild and strengthen the Army. The war in Iraq has severely stretched our military and our Army is at the lowest readiness level it has been in decades. As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I am deeply concerned about the health and capacity of our Army. It is reassuring that President Bush is finally turning public attention to a problem some of us in Congress have long been concerned about.
“More than a year ago, I sponsored legislation with Rep. Ellen Tauscher which would have increased the end strength of the army by 80,000. The new Congress needs to move quickly to strengthen the Army and Marines -- not to send more troops to Iraq -- but to rebuild our capacity to meet national security threats globally.
“With regard to Iraq, I am sobered by the judgment of former Secretary of State, Colin Powell, other military experts and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who are cautioning against sending more troops to Iraq. I am deeply skeptical about the administration's reported ‘surge strategy’ requiring an additional 20,000-30,000 troops to secure Baghdad. Instead, I believe we should be looking for ways to reduce our military footprint in Iraq and accelerate the transfer of security responsibilities to Iraqi soldiers and police."