#ncpol: Marine’s death earns Hudson some unwanted attention

Here’s the story from Big League Politics:

In late January, a Marine Reconnaissance Scout died in a multi-mission parachute training accident in Coolidge, Arizona.

“Alex was one in a million. Always had a smile on his face,” said Noelia Davis, the fallen Marine’s cousin.

According to the U.S. Marine Corps Training Command, Cpl. Alejandro “Alex” Romero, 22, died after a “double-bag static line parachute mishap.”

Romero served with Bravo Company, 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, and in the III Marine Expeditionary Force based in Okinawa, Japan.

The Marine Corps has suspended all double-bag static line parachuting operations indefinitely, according to the U.S. Marine Corps Training Command.

“Alex was a great person who would give you his last dollar so you could eat,” said Davis. “He was a person who saw the good in all people, and would go the extra mile for others, from spending time with them to saying a prayer for them.”

Congress passed the HR 2810, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in December. It was sponsored in the House of Representatives by Rep. Mac Thornberry, (R.-Tx.), the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.

The Act included a provision that denied funding for new Marine Corps and Army parachuting equipment until the Secretary of the Navy could provide certification proving that new equipment was necessary.

Thornberry’s office refused comment on the obstruction of funding.

Claude H. Chafin, Communications Director for the House Armed Services Committee told Big League Politics that the amendment was offered by Rep. Richard Hudson (R.-NC.) on the House Floor.

“Members are concerned that the two services are not coordinating the purchase of the [parachute] systems as well as they could, and have not fully justified the need for this particular design of parachute,” Chafin said.

Big League Politics spoke with Hudson’s office and asked why he blocked funding for the new equipment.

“He didn’t,” said Tatum Gibson, Communications Director for Hudson.

“He helped ensure the Marine Corps is not wasting taxpayer dollars by purchasing a new parachute system that they don’t have a demonstrated need for,” she said. “He is also concerned about the lack of testing before the new parachute system is purchased that could jeopardize the safety of the Marines using it.”

Big League Politics spoke with retired Marine Corps 1st Sgt. David C. Danel, the president of the Military Reconnaissance Foundation, who said that the history of the Marine Reconnaissance community goes back to 1940, and its primary mission is to provide intelligence for battlefield commanders, both for divisional commanders and large Marine Expeditionary Force commanders.

“One of those missions is free-fall parachuting into a drop zone which can be 15 to 20 miles away inside enemy territory,” he said.

Danel said that going back decades, the military has been under-funded, and that some Marine Corps parachuting equipment is purchased second-hand from the Army.

He said that the Marine Carps often waits for the Army to prove the effectiveness of the equipment before adopting it themselves.

Danel described Corporal Romero as a very stellar Reconnaissance Marine, and said that his peers thought extremely highly of him.

“He was on the path to becoming a full-fledged, operating Reconnaissance Marine,” Danel said.

Danel’s foundation has raised funds to fly Romero’s teammates from Japan to attend his funeral services at the request of Romero’s family. They raised $16,000 in seven days for plane tickets to bring twelve Marines home for the service.

“If the family asks for something, we try to do everything we can to give it to them.”

I know there is a common perception out there that the military is swimming in cash and wasting money left-and-right.  But how about stories like this where special forces operators are having to purchase their own protective gear to wear into battle?

Here, in 2016, the US military is having to turn to aircraft “boneyards” in order to produce enough “flyable” aircraft.

Early in the war on terror, soldiers sought help from family and friends back home to supply suitable body armor.

I heard from one active duty military friend about his experience on a combat mission to Africa some years back.  The Air Force plane flew him and his men to Germany. Technical problems delayed the second leg of their trip.  They took off and made it as far as Greenland — having to make an emergency landing due to smoke inside the fuselage of the aircraft.  They stayed in Greenland for a while as the plane was again repaired.  They took off and made it to New Jersey before making another emergency landing.   Repairs on the plane got started again.  My friend and his fellow soldiers had enough. Someone pulled out a credit card and booked them all seats on a commercial flight back to Fayetteville — where Fort Bragg is.  Can you imagine sitting in first class and seeing these guys in desert battle gear and greasepaint on their faces — after checking their weapons at baggage claim — boarding?  How often can we count on USAir to shuttle our troops around?

Seeking out waste and abuse is one thing. Failing to ensure our troops have the BEST of the BEST to do their jobs is a disgrace.  Too often, politicians view the military as a vehicle for social experimentation.  (Trannies in the Green Berets?)

Bases are evaluated not on their strategic importance, but on the economic impact to the civilians in the congressional district.

Talk to some of our active duty folks.  You’d be stunned to learn of the lack of important gear, or the sub-standard equipment they have to do very dangerous jobs with. How does Richard Hudson — who has never had a real job — know what our military folks need or don’t need?