General Ray Odierno Won't Even Talk to National Guard?

Colorado National Guard Boss Decries Rift With Regular Army
Colorado Springs Gazette
by Tom Roeder
Mar 16, 2015

Colorado's National Guard boss, Maj. Gen. H. Michael Edwards, describes the relationship between state Guard leaders and Army brass as broken, saying the two entities are giving each other the silent treatment over budget battles.

"The relationship is not good and it is sad," said Edwards, an Air Force officer who reports to Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper rather than the Pentagon.

Tensions are high over Army proposals to strip the Guard of attack helicopters and shave the Army Guard's ranks by 8,000 troops to save cash.

Army leaders were a no-show at a gathering of top National Guard commanders in Washington this month, Edwards said in remarks to the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance.

"It has gotten very difficult for either one to talk to each other," Edwards said.

Because they report to governors rather than the Pentagon, Guard commanders are empowered to speak for their states when it comes to budget issues and force structure. In the regular military, a two-star could be fired for speaking out against Pentagon brass.

Edwards suggested a change at the top of the Army to replace chief of staff Gen. Ray Odierno could be what it takes to get Guard leaders and Army brass back in the same room.

"Sometimes it takes changes in leadership to move forward with the ball," Edwards said.

Odierno, who is expected to retire from the Army's top post in September, has proposed cutting Guard ranks by 8,000 soldiers and continues pushing the plan to pull AH-64 Apache attack helicopters from National Guard fleets to beef up the active-duty's aviation arsenal.

That has made enemies in states and in Congress, as the National Guard fired up its powerful 50-state lobbying efforts to defeat the cuts. While the helicopter move was proposed last year, political roadblocks have stymied its implementation.
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Linked from Military.com