Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger told Bush administration officials Monday that he is tired of the Pentagon treating the California National Guard like a stepchild by using its equipment in Iraq and Afghanistan without returning or replacing it.The Republican governor, in a visit to Washington for the annual meeting of the National Governors' Association, said the California National Guard is missing about half of its equipment - from humvees to radios. That could leave California at risk in an earthquake, fire or other emergency, Schwarzenegger said.
"It's not fair to the states for the federal government to go into a war and then to take from us the equipment," he said after meetings Monday with President Bush and Cabinet officials. "Every time our National Guard leaves, they take with them equipment but they don't bring it back."
Other governors have also complained about the drain of equipment. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, a Democrat, said last May that her state's response to a tornado in the town of Greensburg was limited because 15 of the Kansas National Guard's 19 Black Hawk helicopters were overseas, along with trucks, bulldozers and other equipment.
Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Schwarzenegger and other governors that the Pentagon plans to pay to replace some of the equipment that is damaged or destroyed, but the compensation could take several years because of budget constraints.
Schwarzenegger said states also face budget shortfalls and can't shoulder the burden indefinitely.
When I first starting writing about this back in the early years of the war, I would often get attacked by conservatives for being an angry liberal who most obviously hates America. Either that, or I was told I was delusional. But now its so obvious that even Republican governors are saying it. Better late than never, I suppose...
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