In an interview with “60 Minutes” this month, President Joe Biden was asked about how many crises the United States can “take on” at once. Biden replied, essentially, that America can handle anything. But as the United States courts strategic overstretch with possible involvement in multiple foreign conflicts, concerns about its own military readiness are becoming harder to ignore.
Training exercises are not preparing units for the realities of the modern battlefield, sustainment issues are keeping complex platforms out of action, and a high operational tempo driven by “forward presence” missions is pushing the joint force to a breaking point. Pentagon leadership might be loath to acknowledge it, but the military has a growing readiness problem on its hands.
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