U.S. Marines rattled by bullet shortage
Garth Kant
Rank and file told to conserve as Big Sis buys by the billion
At least one branch of the U.S. military is scrimping and saving every bullet it can while the Department of Homeland Security is on a bullet-buying spree.
Marine Corps Commandant James F. Amos blames sequester budget cuts.
In a video to Marines, he says, “I ask you to save every round, every gallon of gas, that you take every single aspect, or opportunity, in training to get the most bang for the buck.”
Amos said it’s “no time to do business as usual.”
Things have changed. The landscape has changed,” he said. “I need you to be conservative in the way we do business.”
Sequester cuts do not seem to have slowed down the massive purchase of bullets by DHS. WND bas been closely following the department’s big buildup of ammo, reporting DHS bought more than 1.6 billion rounds over the last year.
Members of Congress are demanding the Obama administration explain why it is stockpiling a huge arsenal of ammunition and weapons.
“They have no answer for that question. They refuse to answer to answer that,” said Rep. Timothy Huelscamp, R-Kan.
Rep. Leonard Lance, R-N.J., said he wants a “full explanation.”
DHS has argued it is buying in bulk to save money, explaining it uses as many as 15 million rounds a year for training law enforcement agents. But the 1.6 billion rounds would be enough for more than 100 years of training.
Additionally, the DHS is buying hollow-point bullets, which experts say are rarely used for training exercises. The DHS ordered 240,000 hollow-point rounds last month and has now placed an order for 360,000 more rounds.
It’s not just the Marines who are struggling to get by. Even local law enforcement agencies are having a tough time finding ammo.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said she believes the federal government is building an arsenal to prepare for civil unrest if the country goes bankrupt.
Retired U.S. Army Captain Terry M. Hestilow has written a letter to Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, warning that “the recent appropriation of weapons by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that can only be understood as a bold threat of war by that agency, and the Obama administration, against the citizens of the United States of America.”
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http://www.wnd.com/2013/03/u-s-marines-rattled-by-bullet-shortage/print/