March 18, 2012

General Fraser Rightly Defends Southern Command's Budget

By Wayne Simmons and Kerry Patton
Southern Command's chief, Air Force General Douglas Fraser, had recently briefed the Senate Armed Services Committee on the growing threat of Iranian-backed terror networks in South America.  His insight contradicts Director of National Intelligence James Clapper's most recent national threat assessment, which failed to mention anything about Iranian proxies.  Is the growing Iranian-South American alliance threat truly new, or was this briefing intended to secure USSOUTHCOM's budget? At the same time the current administration seeks to cut defense spending, virtually every major command needs sound reasons to justify sustaining, far less growing, budgets.  Of the major commands, USSOUTHCOM is in danger.  Very few have spoken about Southern Command's activities and needs until now. Pacific Command appears to be the most financially secure, considering President Obama's recent push for extensive military alignments with nation-states in that region.  Central...(Read Full Article)