Trump's cutting $1 billion from the Coast Guard at a time when it's doing more than ever

Business Insider ^ | Mar. 3, 2017 | Paul Szoldra and David Choi

[artichokegrower]

President Donald Trump's proposed budget guidance is asking for $1.3 billion in funding cuts to the U.S. Coast Guard at a time when the service is doing more than ever, and is already severely under-resourced.

[PAR35]

Glad to know that you want to stand up and defend these important Coast Guard missions. We wouldn’t want a healthy white male to catch an even break, would we:

Civil Rights Awards Program

Each year the United States Coast Guard, along with other branches of the armed services, participates in national awards ceremonies designed to recognize military and civilian members of the Services who have made significant contributions to Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity. Click here for a listing of awards that we sponsor.

State Recreational and Boating Safety Program

Title VI of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.

Special Emphasis Program

...the programs emphasize the enhancement of employment and advancement opportunities for minorities, women, and persons with disabilities.
https://www.uscg.mil/civilrights/OutreachPrograms.asp

[PAR35]

Here’s another important agenda that you are defending:

http://gcaptain.com/gay-at-sea-a-look-at-the-us-coast-guards-lgbt-community/

Keep those funds coming, or the Coast Guard might have to go back to patrol and search and rescue.

[Anoreth]

At this rate not so sure that I’d be getting an option either way in the next couple years. The money has to come from somewhere and (for obvious reasons) it’s safer to cut billets and personnel than it is operating budgets for stations and cutters.

[RinaseaofDs]

If the USCGis spending 1B on Maritime Environmental Protection, tben cut the billion. Wasted cash.

[vooch]

“...Got to get the $500 billion+ needed to balance the budget from somewhere, and since only $1.2 trillion of the $3.9 trillion federal budget is “discretionary”, that is a kinda tough w/o ticking a lot of people off....”

precisely

[elcid1970]

Believe you nailed it. If the U.S. Navy is eaten up with gay- and female- friendly PC, how could the USCG not be?

How many USCG admirals in pantsuits & skirts, eh?

[uscga77]

I served in the CG as a shipboard engineer. We were always making do, bartering, trading and “requisitioning” stuff to get by. It always suffers because it is not in the DoD. You learn to be very resourceful! The Coast Guard has a lot of peacetime missions including, SAR, drug interdiction, marine safety etc. besides being ready to serve alongside the Navy in war. I imagine 9-11 provided an opportunity to replace worn out resources like the ship I was on. Yet the CG will step up as always if resources are taken away.

[maine-iac7]

I’ll take any cut, any size, any department. The reason government never gets smaller is because we have sacred cows

Sacred cows?

Where were YOU when Carter decimated our military - resulting in disasters we never really recovered from.

It took Reagan to get our military up to 'ready' again.

Then along came the Clintons, who viscerally hated our military and all but destroyed them agin.

And Bush had to bring them back.

Then Obama did every thing he could to destroy our military - including the killing of thousands of our soldiers with hie ROE - that gives the enemy the first shot, etc...

See a pattern here?

Go suck an egg

[buffaloguy]

The CG should immediately be returned to the Department of Defense. They are military sailors.

[maine-iac7]

maybe he’s just cutting the transgenger bathroom onboard costs.

LOL

Good one - BUT, Maybe not far from the truth1 a good investigative reporter could get a great story there

[maine-iac7]

How many "official" parties and vacations while claiming "inspections" ... on our tax dollars?

How much information do you have to back up your slam - and keep it to the coastguard.

I'm amazed at the broad brush, uniformed accusations are thrown out into the WWW without backup information instead of pompous know-nothing know-it-all.

[maine-iac7]

AMEN, Grampa Dave

[aumrl]

What type of fuel are the ships burning?
One Navy fleet was using some kind of ‘green’ fuel.....

Going back to traditional bunker would save significantly

[sport]

So What?I trust Donald.

[maine-iac7]

The Coast Guard is ostensibly a branch of the military services, and as such, has suffered from the funds sequester of recent years. Their mission, unlike that of the Navy, is to patrol the littoral regions for a distance up to the edge of the territorial waters, and to intercept smugglers, rescue stranded boats or victims of maritime disasters, and act as part of the border control, where their function is as vital as that of the ICE, and falls within the jurisdiction of Homeland Security.

Because of budget restrictions, it may be necessary to recast the mission of the Coast Guard, but they are by no means being phased out.

Thanks for a rational post.

It's disheartening to hear such otherwise ignorant and clueless remarks from Freepers - almost as if this story is a plant with trolls clued in to post.

[maine-iac7]

Is this FAKE news? I believe that the U. S. Coast Guard is severely under-resourced as much or more than the other services. Time to wait for more clarity and rationale. This claim does not compute.

BINGO

[maine-iac7]

I served in the CG as a shipboard engineer. We were always making do, bartering, trading and “requisitioning” stuff to get by. It always suffers because it is not in the DoD. You learn to be very resourceful! The Coast Guard has a lot of peacetime missions including, SAR, drug interdiction, marine safety etc. besides being ready to serve alongside the Navy in war. I imagine 9-11 provided an opportunity to replace worn out resources like the ship I was on. Yet the CG will step up as always if resources are taken away.

How about you opiners listen to someone who's actually 'been there"?

And it's the same today - or worse, since Obama switched the CG from the DOD to the HLS... which should NEVER have been allowed

[maine-iac7]

The CG should immediately be returned to the Department of Defense. They are military sailors.

BINGO

If this isn't a fake story - maybe that's where the savings could come from- get the CG back where it belongs.

[PIF]

“Crabber lives matter !!!”

So do Gillnetters, Seiners, Shrimpers, Draggers, and Trollers ...

[Steamburg]

Want a little Whine with that. Perhaps a change leadership would make for far better use of funds. This is only the beginning of putting our military back on task and out of the outreach business.