Gen. George Casey said "Soldiers need more time at home"

Two points that need to be remembered here. During the presidential campaign, there were a lot of veterans upset saying they heard Senator Obama wanted to cut the size of the military because he wants to cut the budget. They wouldn't listen. The size of the Army alone is going to increase. The spending cuts are to stop spending money that does not need to be spent, as in the case of contractors in Iraq and their cost plus billing and other waste. The other part is that this is not the first time longer dwell time has been talked about. Congress held hearings on this two years ago but not much has been done to do it.

Casey: Soldiers need more time at home

By MICHELLE ROBERTS - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Nov 17, 2008 16:39:30 EST

SAN ANTONIO — After years of longer and more frequent deployments, soldiers should get more time at home as long as overall demand for troops overseas holds steady, the Army chief of staff said Monday.

Increasing the time troops have at home is probably the most important element for readying them for future assignments, said Gen. George Casey during a news conference after a Purple Heart ceremony.

With the size of the Army growing and demand holding steady, soldiers should get nearly 18 months at home starting next year. By 2011, they should get two years at home to undergo more training and spend time with their families, Casey said.

Soldiers and their families have been strained by 15-month deployments ordered as part of the surge in Iraq. Some have been getting less than a year at home between deployments and are on their second or third tour.

A reduction to yearlong deployments and the planned growth in troops should give soldiers more time away from the battlefield, Casey said. The Army plans to add 74,000 troops by 2011.
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