>>> WELCOME BACK ON THIS INDEPENDENCE DAY AS MEMBERS OF ARMED FORCES ARE BEING HONORED AND CELEBRATING AT THE WHITE HOUSE AND AROUND THE COUNTRY, THE U.S. MILITARY IS IN THE MIDDLE OF WHAT IS A MASSIVE RECRUITING DRAFT, IN 2022, THE U.S. ARMY HAD ITS MOST DIFFICULT RECRUITING YEAR SINCE IT ENDED THE DRAFT IN 1973. OTHER BRANCHES ARE STRUGGLING, TOO. THE ARMY, NAVY AND AIR FORCE, ROUGHLY 30,000 RECRUITS SHOWED OFF, THERE WERE ALSO EXPLANATIONS FOR THE SHORTFALL, THE PANDEMIC AND THE LABOR MARKET, BUT ONE REASON APPEARS TO BE THE VETERANS THEMSELVES. MORE VETERANS ARE URGING FAMILY MEMBERS AGAINST ENLISTING, THAT DOES NOT BODE WELL FOR AN ARMY WHERE NEARLY 80% OF ALL NEW RECRUITS HAVE A FAMILY MEMBER WHO SERVED YOU JOINING ME IS THE RETIRED ARMY COLONEL, JACK JACOBS. ON THIS HOLIDAY, AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. THIS IS A HECKUVA HEADLINE ABOUT THE ALL VOLUNTEER FORCE IN THE U.S. RIGHT NOW, THE FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEF OF STAFF, MIKE MULLEN TOLD THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ABOUT THE PROSPECTIVE RECRUITS. HE SAID THE FOLLOWING ARE NOT TELLING THEM TO GO TO THE MILITARY, MOMS, COACHES, PASTORS, THEY DO NOT SEE IT AS A GOOD CHOICE. WHAT IS YOUR TAKE? >> IT USED TO BE A GOOD CHOICE, WE HAVE GENERATIONS OF PEOPLE JOINING THE MILITARY BECAUSE PREVIOUS GENERATIONS HAD, MY FATHER SERVED IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN THE ARMY, AND I THOUGHT IT WAS MY OBLIGATION TO SERVE. BUT A LOT HAS HAPPENED SINCE WE DECIDED TO HAVE AN ALL VOLUNTEER FORCE. THE RESULT HAS BEEN FAR FEWER PEOPLE GOING INTO THE MILITARY TO START WITH, WHICH LEAVES FAR FEWER PEOPLE TRYING TO INFLUENCE THOSE WHO WOULD OTHERWISE COME IN. IT'S INTERESTING TO NOTE THAT A VERY LARGE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE WHO ENTER THE ARMED FORCES NOW, ON THE ORDER OF 78 OR 79% HAVE A FAMILY MEMBER WHO HAS SERVED, BUT ONLY 30% HAVE A PARENT WHO SERVED. THAT NUMBER IS COMING DOWN, TOO. AN ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH YOU CAN DO JUST ABOUT ANYTHING AND MAKE SOME MONEY, COMING INTO THE MILITARY SEEMS TO BE AN OPTION THAT NOT MANY PEOPLE ARE SELECTING. >> YOU MAKE A GOOD POINT, NOW THERE'S THIS COMPETITION FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS FOR THOSE POTENTIAL RECRUITS RIGHT NOW, WHERE GOING INTO THE MILITARY AS A WAY TO SECURE YOUR FUTURE, YOUR EDUCATION WOULD BE GUARANTEED, IT WOULD BE PAID FOR. THERE ARE A LOT OF OTHER ROUTES THAT A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE ARE USING, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY FATIGUE ASSOCIATED WITH THE RECENT WAR. SO HOW DO YOU FLIP THE SWITCH ON THIS? HOW DOES THE MILITARY CHANGE THIS TRAJECTORY?>> WELL, THAT TAKES LEADERSHIP, JUST ABOUT ANYTHING, WHAT YOU WANT TO ACCOMPLISH, TAKES LEADERSHIP. AND WE HAVE NOT HAD LEADERS WHO HAVE DONE A VERY GOOD JOB OF CONVINCING THE RANK AND FILE OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC, THAT IF YOU ARE LUCKY ENOUGH TO LIVE IN A FREE COUNTRY, YOU OWE US SOMETHING IN THE FORM OF SERVICE. WHAT HAS HAPPENED NOW IS THAT SO FEW PEOPLE ARE SERVING, NOT BECAUSE NECESSARILY RECRUITMENT IS DOWN BUT BECAUSE WE ARE TAKING ONLY VOLUNTEERS AND WE DON'T HAVE A DRAFT. IS THAT, STATISTICALLY, MOST AMERICANS DO NOT KNOW ANYBODY IN UNIFORM, THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS SEPARATION, WHEN YOU ARE SEPARATED FOR THOSE WHO ARE IN SOME CASES RISKING THEIR LIVES AND MAKING SURE YOU REMAIN FREE AND THE UNITED STATES ACHIEVES ITS FOREIGN POLICY OBJECTIVES. THE ONLY WAY THIS WILL CHANGE IS THROUGH LEADERSHIP. IT'S INTERESTING TO NOTE FOR EXAMPLE, THAT MORE PEOPLE WERE KILLED ON 9/11 IN NEW YORK CITY THEN WERE KILLED IN PEARL HARBOR. YET, IN 1941, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF YOUNG PEOPLE ARE DEFENDING THE COUNTRY, THAT DID NOT HAPPEN AFTER 9/11, AT THE END OF THE DAY I GO BACK O WHAT I SAID BEFORE, IT TAKES LEADERSHIP. IF YOU CAN'T MOTIVATE PEOPLE TO GO TO OTHER COUNTRIES AFTER 9/11, IT'S GOING TO TAKE EXTRAORDINARY LEADERSHIP TO CHANGE THAT. >> A LOT OF THE PEOPLE YOU WOULD BE RECRUITING WERE NOT EVEN BORN WHEN 9/11 TOOK PLACE NOW 22 YEARS AGO. THIS IS A BIGGER ISSUE, NOT JUST ABOUT RECRUITING, BUT IT'S ALSO ABOUT AMERICA'S MILITARY PREPAREDNESS GOING FORWARD WITH THESE EMERGING CONFLICTS OR COMPETITION WITH CHINA AND RUSSIA, SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR OUR READINESS? IF WE WENT TODAY, SAY CHINA DECIDES TO GO TO TAIWAN, HOW CONFIDENT ARE YOU THAT WE HAVE THE PERSONNEL THAT WE NEED AND THE PERSONNEL IN THE PIPELINE IN PLACE >> WELL, ONE CANNOT HAVE VERY MUCH CONFIDENCE IN THE CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES. AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE MILITARY DISCOVERED THAT A FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT REPORT OF PEOPLE THAT EVEN WANT TO COME INTO THE MILITARY ARE NOT PHYSICALLY CAPABLE OF BEING IN THE MILITARY. OR WHO HAVE DRUG PROBLEMS AND SO ON. IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO EVEN GET PEOPLE WHO ARE QUALIFIED WHO WANT TO COME IN. THE SECOND THING TO KEEP IN MIND IS, SOME SERVICES ARE FAR MORE VULNERABLE THAN OTHERS. YOU CAN MAKE ARMY UNITS SMALLER AND SO ON AND THEY CAN OR CAN'T DO THEIR JOB BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, IF YOU ARE GOING TO SOMEPLACE LIKE THE NAVY WHICH IS HEAVILY EQUIPMENT CENTRIC, YOU HAVE TO HAVE PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT OCCUPATION
