Army recruiter to Iraq veteran: President Obama will save you from redeployment RAW STORY

Published: Sunday November 9, 2008





Print This Email This One Army recruiter has picked up a new tool to attract applicants: President Obama.



VetVoice's Brandon Friedman was forwarded an e-mail sent to an Iraq veteran and former Army captain encouraging the individual to join a Reserve or National Guard unit on a two-year mobilization deferment to avoid the risk of being redeployed overseas as part of the Individual Ready Reserves.



"A President Elect who says he'll get us out of Iraq. What are you waiting for?" the recruiter asks. "Stop taking your chance's (sic) in the IRR and be safe from deployment for 2 years. By that time our new President will have gotten us out of these other countries."



"So has this career counselor simply gone 'rogue' on us? Or is this going to be the new method by which the Army attracts soldiers into--and back into--the ranks?" Friedman asked. "Leaving aside for a moment the fact that the recruiter is making a promise he knows he can't keep, I'll be honest: I'd be lying if I said the prospect of an Obama administration hadn't made me consider the possibility of rejoining. So, in essence, this career counselor has probably just taken a logical, reasonable step.



"But larger questions become immediately apparent: Was this career counselor told to use this tactic by his chain of command or not? Is this going to be a shift in recruiting Army-wide? Is the Army going to use President Obama as a recruiting tool? If so, this would symbolize a stunning--if not totally rational--renunciation of the Bush administration and its handling of the military. If this becomes an Army policy, it represents a true 'ding-dong the witch is dead' moment for the service."



