by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Speaking Monday to the Rotary Club of Jacksonville, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs Thomas Hall said he came by his job in an unusual manner.
After a 38-year career in the U.S. Navy that began as a midshipman at the Naval Academy and concluded with the rank of Rear Admiral, Hall entered the private sector to serve on the boards of directors of several organizations that are concerned with veterans rights and benefits. In 2002, he decided it was time to return to government service and that’s where the story gets a bit unusual.
When President George W. Bush took office in 2001, he needed to appoint an Assistant Secretary of Defense who would be responsible for the National Guard and Military Reserves. Hall wanted the assignment, but first he had to answer a few questions.
“They asked me how much money I had contributed to President Bush’s campaign. I answered ‘none.’ They asked me if I knew President Bush. I said ‘no.’ They asked me if I was from Texas. I told them I was from Oklahoma,” he said. “Then they asked me what made me think I was qualified for the job.
“I said I have an idea people who have this kind of job ought to know what they are talking about. Eight months later, I had the job.”
Hall said during his career at the Department of Defense it was his job to transition the National Guard and Reserve from weekend warriors to front-line troops, what Hall called the “Strategic Reserve.”
“Service in the National Guard and Reserve used to be drill once a month, train for 14 days in the summer and in the meantime get your education,” he said. “Now we tell recruits to plan on being deployed for at least a year three times during your career. The bad guys are planning attacks on Americans right now. Terrorists are a vicious enemy, but we will prevail.”
That reality has not had a negative effect in recruiting. In fact, it’s just the opposite, said Hall.
“We are at our best recruiting levels in seven years,” said Hall. “We’re at 108 percent of the quota in the Guard and Reserves and we have the best retention level since 1991.
“It’s an all-volunteer force that’s made up of patriotic young men and women who want to serve their country.”
The increased role of the Strategic Reserve has led to an increase in pay scale to match that of active duty personnel as well as a $50 billion investment that provides all soldiers with the same equipment on the battlefield. Benefits for National Guard members and Reserves and their families are also now the same as those provided for those on active duty because, explained Hall, “When you’re sitting in a foxhole with a bullet coming at you, that bullet doesn’t know if you’re active duty, Guard or Reserve.”
He also said, “When I joined the Navy, I was told (in terms of family) that if the Navy wanted me to have a family they would issue me one. These days, we pay more attention to families. There are more than 700 Family Service Centers and when someone walks into one of them, we ask only two questions: Can we see your ID card and how can we help you?”
Hall speaks to civic and service clubs all over the United States and he complimented the business community as a whole for its contributions to the global war on terrorism.
“The United States needs the help of business to support the Guard and Reserve. American companies have stepped up to the plate, even to the point of continuing health care benefits for employees who are deployed and their families,” said Hall.
[email protected]
356-2466