ABC News has learned the Pentagon is considering extending the tours of duty for every active duty soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Forget small extensions and trickles of national guard troops. Under the proposal, deployments for active duty soldiers would be extended from the current 12 months to 15 months. Senior Defense Department officials say the idea has already been presented to Defense Secretary Gates. A decision is expected as early as this week....The stress on the Army has been compounded by the surge of additional forces the president announced in January, a surge Iraq commander David Petreaus wants to extend. Senior officials tell ABC News there is now consensus at the Pentagon and the White House that Petreaus is right, the surge needs to be extended — until at least the end of the year....
This plan would be unwelcome news to soldiers who have already had two and sometimes three deployments in Iraq, but officials say there is something of a silver lining: Under the plan, soldiers would be guaranteed at least 12 months at home between deployments.
I love that last bit. "Guaranteed." Right. Just like National Guard members were "guaranteed" that they would serve one weekend each month and two weeks each year, right? Just like they were "guaranteed" 12 months at home after their last deployment? Please.
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