Sequester will hurt military, Hagel says

WASHINGTON — American military readiness starts deteriorating at midnight. Flights will be grounded. Ships will stay dockside. Army unit training will stop.

That’s the assessment of the top Pentagon officials in the wake of abrupt and deep budget cuts that will take effect Saturday.

Newly installed Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, at his first full news conference, said he had high hopes that President Barack Obama and members of Congress would find a solution to their dispute over the federal budget before the reductions go too deep.

“This is the security of the United States of America we’re talking about,” Hagel said. “That is the highest order of any government, of any leader. We will do what is necessary and what it takes to assure that security.”

The budget cuts, known in Washington parlance as sequestration, mean an automatic reduction of $85 billion in programs across the board, including 10 percent — $48 billion — of the Defense Department’s budget, which will be applied during the last half of the budget year.

Hagel and Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter said the cuts might damage the department.

The Navy will keep ships in dock, and scheduled maintenance will slow. Naval experts note that getting ships and sailors back up to speed after months of being idled won’t be quick. And since ship maintenance schedules are made years in advance, any disruption would cause ripples that might last for years.

The trims apply only to budget areas that haven’t been protected, so they won’t affect the costs of military personnel or funding for the war in Afghanistan. But Carter noted that they’ll fall even harder on the unprotected parts of the budget, and three areas in particular will take the biggest blows.

In the civilian workforce, part-time employees may face layoffs and full-time employees face an unpaid day off beginning at some point in April. Among contractors, new orders will be cut or delayed, meaning that fewer workers might be needed.

Military readiness is the third area, Hagel and Carter said, and they stressed that deterioration would speed up and become more of a concern with each passing week. While combat aircraft in Afghanistan and nuclear-capable planes will continue to fly, the Air Force will ground most U.S.-based training flights, according to military officials. This might lead to longer-term problems, as grounded pilots may lose the ratings that allow them to fly at all, and delay their return to the air.

As for the Marines, Pentagon officials said they “face significant cutbacks in training,” as does the Army.

Training at the military’s National Training Center in California will cease, and there are fears that if no deal is reached, soldiers will be reliving training methods from the 1970s, when a round of budget problems meant they went to firing ranges, pointed weapons and said “bang” because of a lack of bullets.

There are fears around the Pentagon that if no deal is made before the end of the fiscal year in September, the troops deployed to Afghanistan will have undergone less training, or those already deployed will have to stay longer.

Carter said that while there was some budget flexibility within each military branch, the cuts wouldn’t be without pain.

“This progressively builds over the coming months,” he said. “It really constitutes a serious problem. … The readiness crisis is very real.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.