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The Changing National Guard

The Changing Army National Guard; from Strategic to Operational Force
Not all people understand the purpose of the Army National Guard; it is changing. Most people have heard the conversations. From conversations around the water cooler, to the nightly news, to one’s local home town papers; for those who are fortunate enough to have a town that supports an Army National Guard Unit, many ask, “Why is the Army National Guard (ARNG) going overseas? Isn’t it the Army National Guard’s job to be on the forefront of homeland security? America has a regular army that is supposed to go overseas and fight the country’s battles.” So what is the purpose and mission of the ARNG today? The writer will explore the questions what is the ARNG’s purpose and mission in the homeland and oversees. One should keep in mind the Constitution and the bravery of these citizen soldiers.
It helps to understand how the Department of the Army works and to understand the three components that make up the US Army. First we have what is called the Regular Army. These are Federal active duty troops. They wear the uniform 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They train in their specific Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) when they are not deployed on a federal mission overseas or within the United States.
By comparison the US Army Reserves (USAR) and the ARNG are classified as reserve components of the Department of the Army. They are similar in the fact that they are both part time services, training in their specific MOSs one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer. The USAR is a Federal Reserve component, i.e., their Commander in Chief is the President of the United States. The ARNG on the other hand are state soldier, their Commander in Chief is typically the Governor of their respective state. The ARNG has two missions one being missions assigned by the Governor of the State as well as missions assigned by the President of the United States when needed.
In order to understand the...