Donald Trump’s obsession with drilling paltry amounts of oil off the coasts is perilously close to crippling military readiness, according to a deeply frightening new report.
Republicans have long claimed to support the military and our military strength. It’s one reason we have an overbloated military budget that is ballooning our national debt to heights never before seen. But when it comes to training, our country is also unmatched. Our training capabilities are the reason why our servicemen and women are the best. It’s why we are safe.
However, as Donald Trump weakens our international standing and wages unapproved wars with impunity, while foes such as China and Russia salivate over their growing power in the world, it now appears he is preparing to cripple military readiness by giving free rein to oil companies in areas of the coast that the military uses as crucial training grounds.
According to the Washington Post, Trump is readying a five-year lease plan for oil companies to build drilling platforms off the coast of California and in the Gulf of Mexico in sections that our military uses to train in the event we ever have a confrontation with an aggressive China.
The California coast allows our troops to practice transitioning from the water to the nearby mountains and vice versa. The Gulf is even more important as it shares similar terrain with China that our military uses to simulate a strike against China from Japan.
“The region acts as a training zone, allowing troops to deploy from Virginia toward the Gulf, similar to how they would launch from bases in Japan to travel south toward a potential enemy,” the Washington Post notes. “There are hundreds of open miles for Tomahawk missiles and other weapons to be tested before they are used in combat.”
Oil platforms would force our military to operate around them, disrupting the training they need. All five branches of the military, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and the ridiculous Space Force, would be impacted by the plan, which is slated for finalization in October.
Florida Defense Alliance vice chair Rick Miller, a retired Navy Captain, warned that the results could significantly weaken our national defense.
“It’s almost strategically backwards,” Miller said. “For a modest potential increase in oil production capacity, we’d be giving up a tremendous amount of national defense capability.”
Indeed. It’s a dream come true for Russia, China, and other potential adversaries that threaten us and our allies. Training equals preparedness and readiness to defend the country and democracy. Without it, we’re sitting ducks. It’s time for the military to act in America’s best interests and remove Trump and this incompetent administration before it’s too late.
Featured Image: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain
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