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On March 14th, a bipartisan team of
National Guard supporters in Congress - Senator’s
Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Kit Bond (R-MO), co-chairs of
the Senate National Guard Caucus, and Representative’s
Gene Taylor (D-MS) and Tom Davis (R-VA) introduced the
National Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense
Integration Act of 2008.
Empowerment legislation enacted in the
FY 2008 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA);
elevated the Chief of the National Guard Bureau (CNGB)
to 4-stars, designated the National Guard Bureau as a
joint activity, required the Defense Secretary to
develop a Charter for the National Guard Bureau,
identified the CNGB as a principal advisor to the
Secretary of Defense through the Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs for matters pertaining to non-federalized Guard
forces, and more.
Empowerment II, as some are calling
it, will build on those historic improvements by;
increasing the quality of advice at the highest levels
by creating a seat on the Joint Chiefs for the CNGB,
assuring our nation’s governors maintain “tactical
control” over federal forces during emergencies, improve
the Department of Defense’s domestic capabilities by
providing the National Guard budgetary authority to
research, validate, and procure essential equipment for
homeland defense, ensure that United States Northern
Command and United States Pacific Command remain in
support of a state/National Guard—led response, and
more.
The National Guard Empowerment and
State-National Defense Integration Act of 2008 is the
next logical step to ensure the National Guard fully
develops its capabilities as an operational force. More
information concerning Empowerment legislation can be
found on our web site
www.ngaus.org.
Contact
your members of Congress and urge them to support and
co-sponsor S. 2760 or H.R. 5603 to ensure the National
Guard is at the table, empowered, and better prepared
for homeland defense response.
TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTION:
By using the “Write to Congress” feature provided below,
you can IMMEDIATELY e-mail your elected representatives.
A sample letter is included in our “Write to Congress”
feature. You can e-mail the pre-written message or edit
the sample letter as you desire. This is the
quickest and most effective method of expressing your
views to Congress. Also, contact your friends and family
and urge them to “Write to Congress” as well. For more
in-depth information and background visit our web site
at
www.ngaus.org/.
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