waltky
Wise ol' monkey
Army looking to make service more amenable to womens...
Army Looks to Recruit More Women, Adapt Physical Testing
Feb 13, 2016 | Beginning this summer, a visit to a local Army recruiting office will include a new set of gymnastic tests to help determine what military jobs a recruit is physically capable of performing.
See also:
Pelosi Wants to Discuss Requiring All Young Women to Register for Draft
February 11, 2016 – House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told CNSNews.com at her press briefing on Thursday that requiring young women to register for the draft is “an issue that we should discuss."
Related:
Cruz, Rubio Back Bill to Keep Obama From Opening Draft to Women
Feb 12, 2016 | WASHINGTON -- Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are supporting legislation that could put the brakes on women in the military draft, adding momentum to growing opposition on Capitol Hill.
Army Looks to Recruit More Women, Adapt Physical Testing
Feb 13, 2016 | Beginning this summer, a visit to a local Army recruiting office will include a new set of gymnastic tests to help determine what military jobs a recruit is physically capable of performing.
Prospective soldiers will be asked to run, jump, lift a weight and throw a heavy ball -- all to help the Army figure out if the recruit can handle a job with high physical demands or should be directed to a more sedentary assignment. The new tests come as the Pentagon is opening all combat posts to women, a process that involves setting physical standards for every job that both men and women will have to meet. As part of the effort, the Army will increase the number of female recruiters to better target women. The goal will be to add 1 percent each year for the next three years in order to get at least one woman at each of the Army's more than 780 larger recruiting centers across the country. Right now, only about 750 of the 8,800 Army and Army Reserve recruiters are women.
Army recruits take the oath of enlistment. More female recruits and a new set of gymnastic tests are two measures the Army is taking to bring in more women soldiers.
The head of US Army Recruiting Command, Maj. Gen. Jeff Snow, told The Associated Press that adding more women as recruiters will give female recruits someone more credible to talk to about options for women in the military and how an Army career could affect married or family life. But he said that getting that increase will be tough because other commands across the Army are also competing to get more women in their units. As women move into combat roles, Army commanders want to have women in leadership positions across the force to serve as mentors and role models. In particular, Army leaders want more women as drill sergeants and platoon sergeants as recruits go through basic and advanced training.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter in December ordered the military services to allow women to compete for all combat jobs. But he and other military leaders have been adamant that the physical standards for the jobs will not be lowered in order to allow more women to qualify. Brig. Gen. Donna Martin, deputy commander of Army Recruiting Command, said that despite the added recruiting efforts, there may not be a flood of women rushing to compete for combat jobs. But she said the Army may see an eventual increase in women enlistments as they see the array of options. "I think it's all about awareness -- about a choice," Martin said. "It's not forcing any women to go into combat arms. It's about making them aware that this is a choice. "It's the whole question of can you have it all," said Martin, who has been in the Army for 29 years, has been married for 21 years, and has a 19-year-old son. "You can have as much as you want."
MORE
See also:
Pelosi Wants to Discuss Requiring All Young Women to Register for Draft
February 11, 2016 – House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told CNSNews.com at her press briefing on Thursday that requiring young women to register for the draft is “an issue that we should discuss."
At the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, CNSNews.com asked Pelosi, “The commandant of the Marine Corps and chief of staff of the Army testified in the Senate Armed Services Committee last week that young women should be required to register for the draft. Do you support requiring all young women to register for the draft?
Pelosi said, “I think it’s an issue that we should discuss. I think we should discuss it. Every time we use the word draft people get a misunderstanding about what you’re talking about but I have supported women in every role in the military including Commander in Chief.” “I think it’s an important issue for us to discuss,” she said. “It is, the public opinion on it is really I think thirsty for more information as to what that would mean.”
Earlier this month, Gen. Robert Neller, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, told the Senate Armed Services Committee, "t’s my personal view that based on this lifting of restrictions for assignment to unit MOS, that every American who’s physically qualified should register for the draft.”
Also, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley testified, "I think that all eligible and qualified men and women should register for the draft." As CNSNews.com previously reported, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced in December that all U.S. military positions--including combat positions--will be open to women. When asked if that means women must register for Selective Service like men are required to do, Carter said, “It may.”
Pelosi Wants to Discuss Requiring All Young Women to Register for Draft
Related:
Cruz, Rubio Back Bill to Keep Obama From Opening Draft to Women
Feb 12, 2016 | WASHINGTON -- Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are supporting legislation that could put the brakes on women in the military draft, adding momentum to growing opposition on Capitol Hill.
The Republican presidential candidates confirmed Thursday that they will back Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and his upcoming bill barring the White House or the courts from changing the law, which requires only men to register with Selective Service in case they need to be drafted into combat. A bipartisan bill was introduced in the House on Thursday that would completely abolish the draft.
Marine Sgts. Emma A. Bringas, left, and Amaya Marin Garnica take cover while maneuvering to conduct an enemy counterattack during an exercise at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif.
The sudden groundswell of opposition comes after military brass and Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, came out in favor of drafting women. The question of fairness in the all-male draft is pressing because the Pentagon decided in December to open all positions -- from boot camp to special operations -- to female troops. "We simply can't trust this president or the courts to honor the law and protect our daughters," Lee said in a statement released to Stars and Stripes. "We need new legislation making clear that if the United States is going to change this policy, Congress must be the one to do it."
Staff for Sen. Cruz, of Texas, confirmed he will be a co-sponsor of the bill. Sen. Rubio, of Florida, supports keeping any decision on the future of the draft in lawmakers' hands. "Sen. Rubio agrees with Sen. Lee that Congress needs to determine the future of the Selective Service system and is working on legislation to codify that role and plans to support it," Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos wrote in an email to Stars and Stripes. The Supreme Court upheld the all-male draft in 1981, finding that women could be excluded because they would not be called to fill critical combat positions during a war. But since the Pentagon began full integration of women, that rationale might no longer be valid. Marine Commandant Gen. Robert Neller and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley testified to the Senate this month that they believe the exemption should be ended.
MORE
Last edited: