SIMI VALLEY, Calif. — If Congress does not approve extra funding to cover the bulked-up U.S. troop presence in Europe and the Middle East, the Army could have to dip into funding meant for recruitment to cover costs of the deployments, a top service official warned this weekend.
Speaking at the annual Reagan National Defense Forum on Saturday, Army Under Secretary Gabe Camarillo said efforts to solve the military recruiting crisis are “absolutely … hamstrung” by funding fights in Congress.
“Right now, without the supplemental for Ukraine and for support to Israel, we in the Army in our base budget, we are funding the operations costs to deploy our soldiers to provide that deterrence and reassurance mission in NATO and in CENTCOM,” Camarillo said, referring to U.S. Central Command.
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“That is the same budget account that I need to use in order to place media buys months in advance for marketing and advertising, to surge events for recruiters in other parts of the country,” continued Camarillo, who was speaking during a panel focused on the military’s recent recruiting struggles.
The accounts also are used to pay for recruiting incentives, such as bonuses for targeted skill sets in certain military occupational specialties, he said.
Camarillo also suggested that Congress’ passing of stopgap spending…
