Pentagon: We Can't Continue To Police The World

SUPPLY LINE: A line of Lockheed C-130 Hercules waiting for take-off at Balad Air Base in Iraq. (Photo: James Gordon/Flickr)

Pentagon Warns It Can't Continue To Police The World -- Sandra I. Erwin, National Defense

The Defense Department has concluded it can no longer afford to satisfy current demands for military forces from overseas commanders. As a result, it is considering cutting back on forward-stationed forces and deployments, said Deputy Defense Secretary Robert O. Work.

"We are really taking a hard look at our whole global posture," Work said Sept. 30 at the Council on Foreign Relations, in Washington, D.C. The U.S. military has maintained forces around the world consistently since the Cold War, but as budgets decline and forces shrink, the Pentagon has to rethink its commitments, Work said. "It will be different," he added. The details of the plan are still under debate.

While there is a big appetite around the world for American leadership, the Obama administration believes that other countries need to step up and share the security burdens, said Work.

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My Comment: A lack of political will in Washington. A sizable (if not a majority) part of the American public trending towards isolationism. No money for Pentagon budget increases .... but instead being faced with budget sequestration. All of these factors .... and more .... are having their intended effect .... a diminished U.S. diplomatic and military presence in the world.