12,000 More U.S. Marines?

Fiscal Times: Trump May Give the US Marines a 12,000-Troop Bump

During his run for the presidency, Donald Trump promised to sharply increase funds for the military, including the United States Marine Corps, which he said ought to be expanded by nearly 12,000 active duty personnel. Now that Trump is president-elect, USMC leaders are beginning to think about how they will proceed if the White House orders them to expand the force by what would amount to about 7 percent of its current size of 182,000 active troops.

In an appearance in Washington on Wednesday, as reported by Marine Corps Times, Marine Commandant Robert Neller said the expansion was possible, but would have to be done carefully.

“Is it doable? Absolutely,” he said. However, he added, “It’s not going to happen overnight. We’ve got a very high-quality force. Whenever you try to grow too fast, it’s very difficult to maintain that level of quality and experience.”

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WNU Editor: The U.S. Marines want more than just extra soldiers .... Top U.S. Marine's wish-list for Trump goes well beyond troop hikes (Reuters).