This seems like a pretty good idea. Here's the gist:
The proposal would expand the role of the Guard chief and give him or her a fourth star; give the Guard more influence in the Pentagon’s budget and create a separate budget for Guard training and equipment; elevate the role of the Guard when responding to domestic crises; and make the deputy commander of U.S. Northern Command a Guard officer.
Kit Bond is proposing this along with Sen. Pat Leahy, D. Vt. With the Gaurd's increasing importance to the overall military, especially in light of the mess in Iraq, a little autonomy might be a good thing.
I don't know how much this will help the individual soldiers that are on their third or fourth tour since joining the guard. Don't get me wrong, it irritates the hell out of me when somebody in the guard tries to resist actually serving a tour of duty for whatever reason. That's what they signed up for! But, these guys shouldn't have to fill a full time soldier's role because it's politically inconvenient to establish a draft. One long tour, maybe two but that should be it. After that, the president should have to look elsewhere and if the war that he started requires a draft, then so be it.
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