Former U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper Says Military Recruitment Is Dying Because Of Obesity, Drug Use, Health Problems, And Americans Who Do Not Want To Serve

Esper issued a warning about the U.S. military's dismal recruitment numbers, writing that only a small fraction of the U.S. is fit to serve anymore since many are either overweight, on drugs or have a criminal past  

Daily Mail: Trump's defense secretary Mark Esper says military recruitment is DYING because of obesity, drug use, health problems and the dwindling pool of Americans who want to serve their country 

* 'The U.S. military's all-volunteer force (AVF) is slowly dying,' Esper wrote in an op-ed for Fox News 

* 'The armed services are struggling to meet their recruiting goals like rarely before,' Esper added 

* Esper, former secretary of the Army, noted that branch will be most affected - falling short by up to 15,000 soldiers this year 

* 'Worse, of the 3.5 million young Americans remaining, only 9% (~320,000) have a proclivity to serve' 

Former Defense Sec. Mark Esper issued a warning about the U.S. military's dismal recruitment numbers, writing that only a small fraction of the U.S. is fit to serve anymore since many are either overweight, on drugs or have a criminal past. 

'The U.S. military's all-volunteer force (AVF) is slowly dying,' Esper wrote in an op-ed for Fox News. 

'The armed services are struggling to meet their recruiting goals like rarely before.' Esper, former secretary of the Army, noted that branch will be most affected - falling short by up to 15,000 soldiers this year.  

Read more ....  

Update: Former Pentagon Chief Warns US Military 'Struggling' to Find New Recruits (Epoch Times)  

WNU Editor: Many having a criminal record does not help. Mark Esper's opinion piece is here .... Long, slow decline of the US military's all-volunteer force puts America in danger (Mark Esper, FOX News).