Legion's role 'critical' for military readiness

American Legion National Security Commission Chairman Matthew Shuman stated in his opening remarks to commission members Aug. 24 in New Orleans during the 105th National Convention that America “must remain vigilant and steadfast in keeping China’s ambitions contained” as they “seek to reshape the Indo-Pacific region and the international system.”  

The importance of America’s military readiness was reinforced from U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Brian Kerg, a nonresident fellow in the Indo-Pacific Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, who spoke to the National Security Commission on how the Legion can advocate for shaping America’s position for readiness and “for our ability to deter this fight. God willing, we don’t have to fight it. But if God forbid we do have to fight it, that we are in the best position possible. And your role is going to be critical.

“There’s a lot of criticism about our state of readiness right now if we had to fight this thing today,” Kerg added, “and that has impact on what the PRC (People’s Republic of China) is doing and how they are pursuing some of its goals and some of its objectives by using that fear, that coercion, that intimidating factor that they can achieve because of our relative combat power as a nation, as military, because of challenges of operational reach. I’m telling you that we can shape that today, and you have a role in shaping that as well.”

Both the 2018 and 2022 National Defense Strategy have identified the PRC “as the premier military threat to the United States national security interests and has tasked the joint forces (Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Space Force) to prepare appropriately” by creating a joint warfighting concept, Kerg said while showing a map of what that would look like in the Western Pacific. U.S. allies are also preparing by building their own weapon capabilities to include Taiwan and Japan, while the Philippine government is allowing American troops to operate temporarily.

“Taiwan is not just waiting on the U.S., not just waiting on the U.S. to come in and save the day,” Kerg said. “They are developing their own capabilities.

“China is frightening and is increasingly looking like an 800-pound gorilla. But the U.S. military is rapidly evolving and changing to meet that threat. As are our allies and partners. But we can’t do it without you. There are significant obstacles getting us to where we want to be.”

Kerg addressed those obstacles and how the Legion can help.

-        Meet logistical needs now to move across the Pacific. “If you look at the map, there’s a lot of blue between us and where we might be fighting. How do we get after that? By putting more stuff forward now. As far as a Legion position, advocate for having more forces and more troops where we are needed now.”

-        Ensure a supply of munitions in stock “to fight this for the long term.”

-        Support the maritime trade and industrial base. “We cannot afford to lose our ships because it will take us years to rebuild. Within the industrial base, you all are in a position of influence. If you want to be ready for this fight, this is what’s required. As you know, The American Legion is and remains the most influential veteran organization in this country. That matters. I encourage you to lean on that influence so that we are ready, and we have what we need.”

-        Recruiting. Kerg shared a slide of the top two reasons why young Americans are deterred or discouraged to join the military – the threat or fear of dying or losing a limb; and fear of having post-traumatic stress. “Because that’s what they see in the movies and media all the time,” Kerg said. “That has to change, and we are the ones who can change that. Because we have lived this life. I, like many of you have lost friends in combat (and has sustained physical injuries from service). Those are real risks and real things we carry. But I will offer to believe that your lives absolutely changed in a positive way, completely enriched, and the lives you live after your service are better because of your service. That’s the story we need to tell. Most of you have more meaningful lives for having served. That’s the message we need you to carry.”