By FITSNews || With no Republican primary opponent and no Democrat filing to run for the office, Major General Bob Livingston is on his way to becoming South Carolina’s next Adjutant General.
As we’ve stated previously, we believe that this position should be appointed by future governors based on the recommendation of S.C. National Guard leaders. Of course in this case it’s good to know Livingston is not only the first choice of the men and women he is in line to command, but also a candidate who is bringing a business background to the position.
So for once, it appears our state’s dysfunctional system actually worked …
Anyway, here’s an interview we did the other day with General Livingston that we hope you find informative.
FITS: First of all, what issues do you see the Guard facing over the next four years?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: I think the Guard is going to face five major issues: One is that we will continue to deploy men and women in the South Carolina National Guard into combat for the foreseeable future. We will have to make sure they are properly prepared to carry out their mission.
Second, we have to be prepared to respond to a homeland security issue or a natural disaster in the state of South Carolina. We have a lot of homeland security targets and while the homeland security issue is the purview of state law enforcement, the National Guard is certainly the primary backup and responder to an incident. We are also on an active (geological) fault and are subject to potential hurricanes. As Adjutant General, I will be responsible for commanding troops in South Carolina and troops coming into South Carolina from other states, with the Governor as Commander in Chief.
Third is that we ask a lot of our men and women and their families. We have to make sure we support them in any way we can.
The fourth issue is that (our state has) a great economic engine in the National Guard. The Guard contributes about $1 billion annually to our state’s economy.
The fifth issue is budgetary. As the state budget continues to dwindle, we will have to work with our State Legislature, and sooner or later, we will have a budget crunch on the national side because of the growing deficit. We will have to learn to do the same task with the same effectiveness, with fewer resources.
FITS: Do you think the current time line for withdrawing combat forces from Afghanistan is feasible?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: Militarily, we are in pretty good shape as far as the time line is concerned for combat troop withdrawal. Of course, we will still have a presence, but more in the sense of an advisory role militarily.
FITS: You mentioned budget cuts. How will those effect the Guard?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: It will restrict the kind of operations we do. For instance, we have about 70 armories in SC and we may have to close some of them, we may have to curtail other operations, and so on. We may also have to utilize volunteer organizations in armories in order to keep them open. Essentially, we will just have to find ways to operate with less.
Also, there will be an issue of the signal we send to Washington about our support of our National Guard. The dollars that our state spends on our National Guard normally have matching federal matching funds. When we spend $1, about $3 comes from the Federal Government. The National Guard has a huge economic impact, and when we’re in the running for things like the F-35 or more troops, we don’t want to be sending the message that we are not supporting our National Guard the way it needs to be supported. So that really requires a great deal of cooperation and coordination between us and the Budget and Control Board, the State Legislature and the Executive Branch, so we’re working in concert with each other to make sure we’re sending the right message to Washington.
FITS: Do you feel that South Carolina is prepared for another Hugo-sized hurricane?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: We’ve taken great steps to be better prepared than we were at the time of Hugo. But, there is still more to do. The major area that we need to look at is the coordination of civilian agencies throughout the state and the Emergency Management Division, the integration of the National Guard, and the integration of resources from outside the state of South Carolina. When we look at if we’re prepared and what we need to do, we have to look at how we can integrate all of those entities in preparing and responding to a disaster.
FITS: How has September 11 and regular deployments in the War on Terrorism affected the Guard and its ability to respond to natural disasters here at home?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: The Guard has always had the dual role of contributing to the national collective defense as well as responding to state emergencies. I do not think we have compromised our abilities. Nationwide, we are at a 30 percent mobilization, meaning no more than 30 percent of a state’s Guard is deployed at one time. In South Carolina, we have a relatively robust National Guard compared to our population, so we are well-prepared to respond to anything. Also, given the cooperation with other states in time of disaster, we are always prepared to respond to disasters.
FITS: What kind of economic impact does the Guard have on South Carolina?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: I’m glad you asked that. A lot of people don’t realize it but the National Guard is the 5th largest employer in the state. And as I mentioned earlier, it provides an annual economic impact of $1 billion.
FITS: Some people don’t realize this, but in addition to your military career, you’re also a successful businessman with a firm here in the Palmetto State that employs nearly 400 people. And while this isn’t necessarily under your purview, what sort of advice would you give to the governor and leaders in the General Assembly about helping businesses like yours during this down economy?
GEN. LIVINGSTON: We need to create an environment that attracts business from both regulatory and fiscal standpoints. We also need to improve the quality of our labor force and that means improving our educational system.
To learn more about General Livingston, check out his website by clicking on the link below. We’d like to thank the General for taking the time to chat with us, and thank his campaign as well for making him available.
WEB EXTRA
General Livingston.com (Official Site)
