H*4679 Concurrent Resolution, By Barfield
 A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION TO MEMORIALIZE THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO REESTABLISH
 CIVILIAN CONTROL OVER THE MILITARY DEPARTMENTS AND EFFECTIVE CUSTODIANSHIP
 OVER THE ARMY NATIONAL GUARD AND TO MEMORIALIZE CONGRESS TO SUPPORT AND
 MONITOR THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE IN THESE MATTERS AND TO PROVIDE FOR CERTAIN
 SENIOR NATIONAL GUARD OFFICERS TO BE OF SUFFICIENT RANK AND AUTHORITY TO
 PARTICIPATE IN THE DEFENSE BUDGETING PROCESS.

   02/24/98  House  Introduced HJ-10
   02/24/98  House  Referred to Committee on Invitations and Memorial
                     Resolutions HJ-10
   03/19/98  House  Committee report: Favorable Invitations and
                     Memorial Resolutions HJ-51
   03/24/98  House  Adopted, sent to Senate HJ-46
   03/25/98  Senate Introduced SJ-6
   03/25/98  Senate Referred to Committee on General SJ-6
   03/27/98  Senate Recalled from Committee on General SJ-2
   03/31/98  Senate Adopted, returned to House with concurrence SJ-26

March 27, 1998

H. 4679

S. Printed 3/27/98--S.

Read the first time March 25, 1998.

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

TO MEMORIALIZE THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO REESTABLISH CIVILIAN CONTROL OVER THE MILITARY DEPARTMENTS AND EFFECTIVE CUSTODIANSHIP OVER THE ARMY NATIONAL GUARD AND TO MEMORIALIZE CONGRESS TO SUPPORT AND MONITOR THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE IN THESE MATTERS AND TO PROVIDE FOR CERTAIN SENIOR NATIONAL GUARD OFFICERS TO BE OF SUFFICIENT RANK AND AUTHORITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DEFENSE BUDGETING PROCESS.

Whereas, the National Guard, as this nation's organized militia, is constitutionally recognized as an existing and permanent part of our government and our way of life; and

Whereas, except during extreme national crisis, the founders provided for the management of the National Guard to be equally shared between the Congress of the United States and the respective states in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution of the United States of America; and

Whereas, the Constitution empowers the Congress to provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia training, reserving to the respective states the appointment of the officers of the militia and the authority of training the militia to the standards prescribed by Congress, this being one of two places in the Constitution where power is shared with the states, the other being a process to amend the document itself; and

Whereas, the existence of a well-organized and disciplined militia, officered by the citizens of the respective states and under the peacetime control of the respective states, was accepted by the prospective citizens of the United States as a necessary and sufficient protection of their liberties and freedoms from any encroachments by a standing military force under the control of the President; and

Whereas, the inclusion of the militia clause led proximately to the adoption and ratification of the Constitution of the United States; and

Whereas, the Constitution assigns three constitutional roles to the National Guard as the nation's militia; two of which are civil: suppressing rebellion and enforcing the laws of the union; and one which is military: repelling invasion; and

Whereas, under the enabling portion of this legislation, Congress has appointed the Secretaries of the Army and the Air Force as the custodians of the nation's militia and requires them to ensure their readiness at all times; and

Whereas, the Congress of the United States also has seen fit to pass laws that place the National Guard in the first line of defense alongside the standing military forces of the United States, that specify the components of the National Guard as a separate land force and a separate air force, and that direct that they be organized in the same manner as the Army and the Air Force; and

Whereas, the United States of America has and will base its defense on the militia construct pursuant to which large military forces have in the past only been maintained when justified by an immediate lethal threat to national security while the bulk of our land force capability is maintained under the control of the citizens in the National Guard; and

Whereas, the Cold War ended in 1990 immediately reducing and ultimately eliminating any direct lethal threats to the American people, their liberties and their freedoms, from conventional military forces; and

Whereas, the leadership of the Department of the Air Force has dutifully and effectively recognized that America is a militia and nation that has structured its force consistent with the beliefs of the American people; and

Whereas, the Department of the Army has taken the opposite course, systematically attempting to reduce the military effectiveness of the Army National Guard of the United States and thereby denigrates its Constitutional and statutory role; and

Whereas, the Army has unlawfully reduced the size and reshaped the structure of the Army National Guard over the last eight years; and

Whereas, the Army has refused and failed to discharge its statutory respnosibilities to develop and maintain the readiness of the Army National Guard organizations and units as mandated by the laws of the United States in order to enable the Army Guard to execute its common law, constitutional and statutory responsibilities of providing for the safety and security of the American people; and

Whereas, this adversarial relationship, perpetrated and fostered since the Revolution by members of the Army, has resulted in a leadership environment within the three components of the Federal Army that is corrosive and destructive to the efficiency and effectiveness of our Nation's military forces; and

Whereas, the attitude and actions of the Army leadership indicates a lack of effective civilian control; and

Whereas, the National Guard and the other reserve forces lack an entry at a high enough level into the budgeting processes of the Department of Defense to ensure that their needs are heard and considered; and

Whereas, the Secretary of Defense's restatement of the Total Force Policy of September 4, 1998, remains unanswered and unexecuted as it pertains to the Army National Guard. There is a dearth of evidence to indicate that the Army military leadership has altered its course denigrating the Army National Guard since the end of the Cold War; and

Whereas, the trust and confidence we place in the officers of the Department of Defense is based on the custodianship of the Army and Air National Guard provided by the Secretary of the Army and the Air Force. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

That the members of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, memorialize the Secretary of Defense to reestablish civilian control over the military departments and the effective custodianship of The Secretary of the Army over the Army National Guard of the United States and memorialize the Army to take those steps necessary to ensure that the Army National Guard achieves the readiness levels established in law by the Constitution and statutes of the United States.

Be it further resolved that the members of the South Carolina General Assembly memorialize the Congressional Delegation of this State to closely and continuously monitor the reestablishment of civilian control of the military and the Department of Defense custodianship over the National Guard and to provide Congressional support necessary to allow the Secretary of Defense to achieve this goal; to insist that the Army leadership provide the resources and assistance prescribed for all units of the Army National Guard to achieve and maintain the readiness level established by Congress; and to provide for the senior military officer of the National Guard on duty in the Department of Defense along with one officer of the Federal Reserve components to be of sufficient rank and authority to participate in the defense budgeting process as equals with the uniformed Service Chiefs.

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to the Secretary of Defense and copies forwarded to the South Carolina Congressional Delegation and to Adjutant General, Stan Spears.