Military Leaders Explore Why Young Americans Unable to Join Military

Mission: Readiness co-hosted Heritage Foundation event about "looming national security crisis"

Military leaders discussed why 71% of young Americans are ineligible for military service and what our nation can do to reverse this trend at a Heritage Foundation event on October 12 that was co-hosted by Mission: Readiness.

The event, A Looming National Security Crisis: Young Americans Unable to Join the Military, featured remarks from U.S. Representative Don Bacon (R-NE), who is a retired Air Force Brigadier General, followed by a panel discussion with Major General Jeffrey Snow, Commanding General of U.S. Army Recruiting Command; Major General Malcolm Frost, Commanding General of U.S. Army Center for Initial Military Training; Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mick Bednarek of Mission: Readiness; and Lieutenant General (Ret.) Thomas Spoehr of The Heritage Foundation, who moderated the event.

Watch video of the event

U.S. Representative Don Bacon: “71% of our youth cannot qualify to enter the armed services. We have to do better.”
Panel discussion with (left to right) Lieutenant General (Ret.) Thomas Spoehr of The Heritage Foundation; Major General Jeffrey Snow, Commanding General of U.S. Army Recruiting Command; Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mick Bednarek of Mission: Readiness; and Major General Malcolm Frost, Commanding General of U.S. Army Center for Initial Military Training.
Major General Jeffrey Snow: “The foundation of the military is its people, and recruiting those people is a no-fail mission.”
Major General Malcolm Frost: “I would argue that the inability to serve in our military is an existential threat.”
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mick Bednarek discussed the importance of quality early education, healthy school nutrition, and more physical education in school so that young people are prepared for many options in life, including the military for those who choose to serve.
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Thomas Spoehr (on left) answering question during event, with Major General Snow.