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A message from your President,
Stephanie Tuckett from the Wilder Armory and I, returned a couple of weeks ago from our Mid-Winter Conference in Portland, OR. Although it was great to meet up again with the other states, our attendance brought back both good news and not so good news. Since being President of the Idaho Enlisted Association I have learned a great deal more both about the legislative process and the way the National Guard is percieved by our Active Duty Counterparts. I took some notes at the Mid-Winter and I wanted to share with you the realities the Guard faces. Some of this information isn't good at all but it is why being a member of a Professional Military Organization is so vital. Remember, there are lots of great Professional Military Organizations to join, however EANGUS is the only one that fights for the Enlisted National Guard. As promised here are some of my notes.
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National Guard Empowerment Act--This was the legislation that has given General McKinley a vote with the Joint Chiefs of Staff
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Credentialing for AIT/Tech Schools
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Super Committee- Debt ceiling deal- $457B in cuts at a minimum over the next 10 years
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Joint Select Committee failed and in place because of this is a possible $600B in cuts in Defense over the 10 years. This is on top of the $457 already in place
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Air National Guard--Air Force is cutting approx. 10,000 jobs, approx. 5100 of these cuts from the Air National Guard. There are also talks of cutting 200 aircraft from the Air Guard.
FUTURE
As you can see some not so good news. So what do we do about it? For starters, be a member of a Eangus. As the various Professional Military Organizations memberships grow, these organizations such as EANGUS can apply pressure to our Congressmen and Senators. That is what we do when we fight the very benefits such as the G.I. Bill. There is no reason why every enlisted man and woman here at Gowen Field should not be a member of EANGUS. How can you become a member? We are doing a $5 membership drive from Mar 1st through April 15 with a tv giveaway. See our "News and Events" tab. Your membership does count and in todays economic times we guardsman need to stick together and standup for ourselves because there are strong forces in D.C. that believe the Guard is dispensible. With your membership we will continue to use our relationships with Idaho's Congressmen and Senators to get their support for Guard issues.
For more information about Eangus click the Eangus 101 link below.
Thank you for your service
Steve Vinsonhaler
President
The Idaho Enlisted Association, EANGUS
Click on the youtube link below to listen Senator Lindsey Graham on the The National Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Integration Act of 2011, sponsored by Graham and Senator Pat Leahy (D-Vermont), would boost the status of the National Guard Bureau chief to the level of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and give the National Guard influence at the highest level of the Pentagon.
In addition, it would create a three-star position of vice chief of the Guard bureau, stabilize funding for Guard domestic missions, provide more transparency in the Guard equipment procurement and require the Pentagon to assess the cost savings and feasibility of shifting more of the national defense to the Guard.
EANGUS $5 Membership drive/42" tv giveaway
March 1st through April 15th
Eangus is having a $5 membership drive and a 42" LCD tv giveaway from March 1st through April 15th 2012. You have to be a member to participate in the 42" LCD tv giveaway. New members can also buy 3 additional tickets at $5 each. If you are a current member, tickets are $5 each and you can purchase a maximum of 4 tickets. If you have any questions or need additional information, you can email me Steve Vinsonhaler at svinsonhaler@imd.idaho.gov.
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