Odierno: Cuts Won’t Shrink Fort Campbell Much

The Army Chief of Staff says looming budget cuts for the military will not shrink Fort Campbell by much. Right now the post on the Tennessee-Kentucky border has close to 30 thousand soldiers.


General Ray Odierno says it’s too soon for specifics in the midst of a sweeping reorganization, and hard decisions might not be finished until the end of this year.

“I would just tell you that Fort Campbell will have a significant amount of people assigned here – it’ll be very close to the level they have now. So we’ll work our way through it as we make those decisions.”

Odierno warned if Congress can’t reach a budget deal by next year, the military would be cut further, in his words “salami-sliced across all programs.” Odierno called that prospect “devastating,” saying it would force the military to rethink its basic strategy.

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Odierno was visiting Fort Campbell yesterday to present the Distinguished Service Cross to Sergeant Felipe Pereira, who is the first soldier on the post to receive the high award since Vietnam. Odierno said the Brazilian native is quote “what the United States is all about.”