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The active-duty Army reached its recruiting target for the second straight month in July, but the summertime rebound may not be enough for the service to fulfill its annual goal, according to figures provided by a Pentagon spokesman Wednesday.
The Army National Guard, meanwhile, missed its recruiting goal again, recruiting only 4,712, 80 percent of its July goal of 5,920 new Guard members, spokesman Bryan Whitman said. The Guard has hit its target only once in the last 19 months.
The U.S. Army Reserve also fell short of its target, recruiting 2,131 new reservists, 82 percent of its goal of 2,585, Whitman said.
The Pentagon has blamed the recruiting shortfalls in part on an economy that’s providing other opportunities to high school and college graduates. Opinion polls also show young people and parents are turning away from Army service because of the ongoing combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Army and Marines have suffered the bulk of the casualties there.
While he called July a “pretty good month” for active-duty recruiting, Whitman said the active-duty Army remains below its year-to-date recruiting goal. So far, 55,207 new recruits have enlisted, 89 percent of its year-to-date target of 62,385.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com …
The Army National Guard, meanwhile, missed its recruiting goal again, recruiting only 4,712, 80 percent of its July goal of 5,920 new Guard members, spokesman Bryan Whitman said. The Guard has hit its target only once in the last 19 months.
The U.S. Army Reserve also fell short of its target, recruiting 2,131 new reservists, 82 percent of its goal of 2,585, Whitman said.
The Pentagon has blamed the recruiting shortfalls in part on an economy that’s providing other opportunities to high school and college graduates. Opinion polls also show young people and parents are turning away from Army service because of the ongoing combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Army and Marines have suffered the bulk of the casualties there.
While he called July a “pretty good month” for active-duty recruiting, Whitman said the active-duty Army remains below its year-to-date recruiting goal. So far, 55,207 new recruits have enlisted, 89 percent of its year-to-date target of 62,385.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com …