2007.01.26: January 26, 2007: Headlines: Presidents - Bush: Civilian Reserve Corps: Boston Globe: No specifics in Bush's call for civilian service
Peace Corps Online:
Peace Corps News:
Peace Corps Library:
Presidents:
President George W. Bush:
2007.01.30: January 30, 2007: Headlines: Expansion: Politics: Budget: Presidents - Bush: Speaking Out: Appropriations: Congress: Washington Times: Is the Civilian Reserve just another throwaway applause line in Bush's State of the Union speech? :
2007.01.26: January 26, 2007: Headlines: Presidents - Bush: Civilian Reserve Corps: Boston Globe: No specifics in Bush's call for civilian service
No specifics in Bush's call for civilian service
Bush called for an army of civilians on Tuesday that he said "would ease the burden on the armed forces by allowing us to hire civilians with critical skills to serve on missions abroad when America needs them. And it would give people across America who do not wear the uniform a chance to serve in the defining struggle of our time." But when asked yesterday to provide details on the president's proposal, White House aides had little to offer. Harris Wofford , a former Democratic senator from Pennsylvania, helped establish the Peace Corps in the Kennedy administration . He said it is up to Bush to rally the country. "You need people recognizing there is a tremendous need," he said in an interview yesterday. "I think you need a president who not only makes a speech and issues the call, but follows through."
No specifics in Bush's call for civilian service
No specifics in Bush's call for civilian service
By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff | January 26, 2007
WASHINGTON -- President Bush's proposal in his State of the Union speech to establish a "Civilian Reserve Corps" marks the latest call to mobilize Americans following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, but like other calls to national service by Bush and both parties in Congress -- most of which have not materialized -- it is heavy on rhetoric but lacks an actual plan.
Bush called for an army of civilians on Tuesday that he said "would ease the burden on the armed forces by allowing us to hire civilians with critical skills to serve on missions abroad when America needs them. And it would give people across America who do not wear the uniform a chance to serve in the defining struggle of our time."
But when asked yesterday to provide details on the president's proposal, White House aides had little to offer.
"How this corps would be designed and established, and how [government] resources would support this effort, would need to be determined," White House spokeswoman Emily Lawrimore said yesterday. "We are looking forward to working with interested members of Congress on how best to develop this idea."
Appeals to the public to sacrifice for the greater good have been made by Republicans and Democrats in recent years. But unlike some previous times of emergency in American history, efforts to mobilize greater numbers of citizens since 2001 have mostly come up short, according to government statistics and social scientists who blame a lack of leadership, funding, and general public apathy.
In his 2002 State of the Union address, Bush called on "every American to commit at least two years -- 4,000 hours over the rest of your lifetime -- to the service of your neighbors and your nation."
Bush established a coordinating council known as the USA Freedom Corps to oversee national service programs such as the Peace Corps and its domestic counterpart, Americorps. He also called for doubling the size of the Peace Corps to 14,000 over an unspecified period.
The number of Peace Corps volunteers, however, remains stagnant at 7,729, while the administration's proposed 27 percent increase in funding last year died in the budget process. And despite a highly touted bipartisan congressional proposal to increase Americorps fivefold to 250,000, the Clinton-era program still hovers between 50,000 and 75,000, and for the first time this year is set to consist of primarily part-timers, according to officials.
"Throughout the last 100 years, national service has waxed and waned depending on the administration that is in office," said Amanda McBride , research director at the Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis. "Bush has embraced service, but not with the requisite funding to even run the programs."
Congressional leaders of both parties have also offered grand proposals that failed to reach fruition.
There was a flurry of bills introduced in the House and Senate seeking to energize the country immediately after the 2001 attacks that never were signed into law. They included the Universal Military Training and Service Act, the Youth Service Scholarship Act, and the Unity in Service to America Act, among many others. There was also the Call to Service Act, co sponsored by Senators John McCain , Republican of Arizona, and Evan Bayh , Democrat of Indiana, to increase Americorps, which received much initial attention but fell by the wayside.
In the years since, according to the database at the Library of Congress , no fewer than 44 other proposals involving national service have been put forward in Congress. None have been enacted into law.
Still, the United States has a long history of rousing its citizens to national service short of donning a military uniform.
The Civilian Conservation Corps, established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, enlisted 500,000 unemployed men at its peak to build bridges and clear trails during the Great Depression. The Peace Corps, established by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, drew 15,000 volunteers at its peak to serve in poor nations.
During the Vietnam war, then-Governor Ronald W. Reagan created the California Ecology Corps for the large number of conscientious objectors who avoided the military draft. And President Carter established the Young Adult Conservation Corps in 1977.
Proposals similar to Bush's new call for civilians to support the military overseas have been made before, but without success. The National Defense University called for a civilian force in 2003, as did the Pentagon's Defense Science Board and the United States Institute of Peace in 2004.
The idea is to have a pool of skilled civilians such as legal specialists, police, or engineers "that can be utilized in a whole range of situations where civilian expertise would be helpful, such as in Sudan or Haiti," said Carlos Pascual , former coordinator for reconstruction and stabilization at the State Department who pushed a similar proposal calling for 3,000 civilians when he worked in the administration.
In her statement yesterday, Lawrimore said, "The President knows that the skill and generosity of the American people are vital resources and critical tools in the global war on terror" and "sees merit in a corps of civilian professionals who are trained and ready to provide 'just in time' surge capability to assist countries as they cope with crises, build civil societies, and recover from tyranny."
But Pascual and others were skeptical that any such program will survive the budget process. "You need funding to be able to recruit people, select people, train people, and maintain them," Pascual said. "None of those resources have ever been appropriated."
Others said far more leadership from politicians and a commitment from the public are needed to realize these goals.
"There are a lot of voluntary programs out there and people haven't signed up," said retired General Wesley K. Clark , who advanced a similar proposal to Bush's when he sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004. "It's lack of an ethic and lack of a message from bully pulpit to [call for people] sacrifice."
Harris Wofford , a former Democratic senator from Pennsylvania, helped establish the Peace Corps in the Kennedy administration . He said it is up to Bush to rally the country.
"You need people recognizing there is a tremendous need," he said in an interview yesterday. "I think you need a president who not only makes a speech and issues the call, but follows through."
Bender can be reached at bender@globe.com.
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: January, 2007; Presidents - Bush
When this story was posted in March 2007, this was on the front page of PCOL:
Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
| Chris Dodd's Vision for the Peace Corps Senator Chris Dodd (RPCV Dominican Republic) spoke at the ceremony for this year's Shriver Award and elaborated on issues he raised at Ron Tschetter's hearings. Dodd plans to introduce legislation that may include: setting aside a portion of Peace Corps' budget as seed money for demonstration projects and third goal activities (after adjusting the annual budget upward to accommodate the added expense), more volunteer input into Peace Corps operations, removing medical, healthcare and tax impediments that discourage older volunteers, providing more transparency in the medical screening and appeals process, a more comprehensive health safety net for recently-returned volunteers, and authorizing volunteers to accept, under certain circumstances, private donations to support their development projects. He plans to circulate draft legislation for review to members of the Peace Corps community and welcomes RPCV comments. |
| He served with honor One year ago, Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul (RPCV Kenya) carried on an ongoing dialog on this website on the military and the peace corps and his role as a member of a Civil Affairs Team in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have just received a report that Sargeant Paul has been killed by a car bomb in Kabul. Words cannot express our feeling of loss for this tremendous injury to the entire RPCV community. Most of us didn't know him personally but we knew him from his words. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends. He was one of ours and he served with honor. |
| Peace Corps' Screening and Medical Clearance The purpose of Peace Corps' screening and medical clearance process is to ensure safe accommodation for applicants and minimize undue risk exposure for volunteers to allow PCVS to complete their service without compromising their entry health status. To further these goals, PCOL has obtained a copy of the Peace Corps Screening Guidelines Manual through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and has posted it in the "Peace Corps Library." Applicants and Medical Professionals (especially those who have already served as volunteers) are urged to review the guidelines and leave their comments and suggestions. Then read the story of one RPCV's journey through medical screening and his suggestions for changes to the process. |
| The Peace Corps is "fashionable" again The LA Times says that "the Peace Corps is booming again and "It's hard to know exactly what's behind the resurgence." PCOL Comment: Since the founding of the Peace Corps 45 years ago, Americans have answered Kennedy's call: "Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." Over 182,000 have served. Another 200,000 have applied and been unable to serve because of lack of Congressional funding. The Peace Corps has never gone out of fashion. It's Congress that hasn't been keeping pace. |
| PCOL readership increases 100% Monthly readership on "Peace Corps Online" has increased in the past twelve months to 350,000 visitors - over eleven thousand every day - a 100% increase since this time last year. Thanks again, RPCVs and Friends of the Peace Corps, for making PCOL your source of information for the Peace Corps community. And thanks for supporting the Peace Corps Library and History of the Peace Corps. Stay tuned, the best is yet to come. |
| History of the Peace Corps PCOL is proud to announce that Phase One of the "History of the Peace Corps" is now available online. This installment includes over 5,000 pages of primary source documents from the archives of the Peace Corps including every issue of "Peace Corps News," "Peace Corps Times," "Peace Corps Volunteer," "Action Update," and every annual report of the Peace Corps to Congress since 1961. "Ask Not" is an ongoing project. Read how you can help. |
Read the stories and leave your comments.
Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.
Story Source: Boston Globe
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Presidents - Bush; Civilian Reserve Corps
PCOL36037
31