Romney Says He'll Expand Armed Forces by 100,000

By: Michael Luo

The New York Times

Thursday, Apr 12, 2007

"Mitt Romney made his most extensive remarks on military and foreign policy on Tuesday, saying that if elected president he would push to add at least 100,000 troops to the armed forces and significantly increase military spending.

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"Mr. Romney said an additional $30 billion to $40 billion a year over the next few years was needed to 'modernize our military, address gaps in our troop levels, ease the strain on our National Guard and Reserves and support our wounded soldiers.'

"Under his calculations, he said, the United States should commit to spend at least 4 percent of its gross domestic product on the military, up from 3.9 percent. 'But increased spending must not mean increased waste,' he said."

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"Mr. Romney also said he would overhaul the civilian bureaucracies that deal with foreign policies like banking, energy and commerce, to improve coordination in confronting needs overseas.

"'Just as the military has divided the world into common regions for all of its branches,' he said, 'so too the civilian agencies should align along consistent boundaries.'"

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"He also called for multilateralism, saying one of his first acts as president would be a 'summit of nations' that would include moderate Islamic states, as well as other leading developed countries. Such a meeting, Mr. Romney said, could result in a commitment to invest in countries confronting Islamic extremists." ...

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