President Considers Tax Credit to Hire Veterans

By Terri Moon Cronk

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2011 – A tax credit for companies that hire military veterans could be the next step in helping the acutely underemployed group, President Barack Obama suggested yesterday in his Twitter town hall meeting.

The president addressed many economic issues surrounding his theme of how to reduce the federal deficit, and was asked about jobs for veterans while fielding questions submitted on Twitter.

A Twitter user asked the president, “Can you give companies a tax break if they hire an honorably discharged veteran?"

That, Obama said, is a subject he’s discussing with his staff.

“We've got all these young people coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan [who] have made incredible sacrifices [and] have taken on incredible responsibilities,” the president said. “You see some 23-year-old who's leading a platoon in hugely dangerous circumstances, making decisions [and]operating complex technologies. These are folks who can perform. But unfortunately, what we're seeing is a lot of these young veterans have a higher unemployment rate than people who didn't serve. And that makes no sense.”

The president said one idea under discussion is to combine a tax credit for companies that hire veterans with a campaign to get private companies to “do the right thing” and hire additional veterans.

An outreach program to hire veterans already exists in the federal government, the president noted.

“We’ve [put] huge emphasis on ramping up our outreach to veterans and hiring veterans,” Obama said, “and this has been a top priority of mine.

“The notion that these guys who are sacrificing for our freedom and our security end up coming home and not being able to find a job, I think, is unacceptable,” he added.

President Calls for Balanced Defense Spending Cuts

By Terri Moon Cronk

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2011 – Though he is committed to cutting the Defense Department budget as part of the overall reduction in the federal deficit, U.S.security and strategic needs must drive the effort, President Barack Obama said yesterday in his first Twitter town hall meeting.

Obama said he conducted the meeting to find out what the public thinks about how to reduce the federal deficit, what costs should be cut and which investments should be kept.

Responding to suggestions for cuts in the defense budget, the president said that is not an easy task.

“We can’t simply lop off 25 percent off the defense budget overnight,” he said. “We have to think about all the obligations we have to our troops who are in the field, and making sure they’re properly equipped and safe.” The need to replace outdated military equipment is another budget consideration, the president added.

“We’ve ended the war in Iraq, our combat mission there, and all our troops are slated to be out by the end of this year,” Obama said. And as Afghan forces take more responsibility for their country’s security, he added, U.S. forces will draw down there as well. But drawing down forces and beginning a new phase in Afghanistan must be done “fairly gradually,” he said.

Obama said that while decisions to cut defense spending will be tough, a reduction requires a balanced approach, as with any government program, to shrink the overall federal budget.

“Those who say that we can’t cut military at all haven’t spent a lot of time looking at military budgets,” he added.

However, the president said, the reductions must take place with the nation’s security in mind.

“One of the things that we have to do is make sure that we do it in a thoughtful way that’s guided by our security and our strategic needs,” he said. “And I think we can accomplish that.”

NAVFAC Mid-Atlantic Celebrates Emerging Leaders

By Tom Kreidel, Naval Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic Public Affairs

NORFOLK (NNS) -- Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Mid-Atlantic held a ceremony to celebrate the graduation of 30 of its employees from the Emerging Leadership Program (ELP) at the command's headquarters on board Naval Station Norfolk, July 1.

This was the second class to graduate from the program.

"This is truly a win-win situation," said Capt. Paul Odenthal, NAVFAC Mid-Atlantic executive officer. "This investment in each of you is one that will come back to us tenfold thanks to what you've learned in this class, along with how you will use these new skills throughout the organization."

The ELP was developed in partnership with the Graduate School to afford NAVFAC Mid-Atlantic employees the chance to participate in a leadership program sponsored by the command. The Graduate School was founded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and celebrates its 90th anniversary this year.

The school has approximately 200,000 participants per year. Its stated mission is to "develop people and to make government more efficient and effective by offering a wide variety of classes and programs, ranging from government-based specialties such as governmental accounting and auditing, human capital management and acquisition to foreign languages, economics, leadership and landscape design."

Odenthal challenged the graduates to help recruit the next ELP class by seeking out co-workers they think would benefit from the class and letting them know what they've learned over the last several months.

"Now that you've graduated, this isn't the end, it's just the beginning," he added.

According to Lori Bowen, who coordinates the program for NAVFAC Mid-Atlantic Community Management, the program last approximately six months with three, one-week sessions held at the command's headquarters. Students also perform assignments on their own, as part of the program.

Bowen said the program covers team building, communication, conflict management, problem solving, decision making, interpersonal skills and customer service. She said by the third period of onsite instruction, there is a noticeable use of these skills in how the students interact with each other and their instructors.

"They really come away with a better understanding of themselves and the organization," Bowen said. "While we can't guarantee them exactly where taking this course will lead them, we can guarantee it will give them many tools in their toolbox to help them succeed."

The students in the course also say their participation was integral in their development.

"The fact that we have ELP shows that NAVFAC Mid-Atlantic really values me as an employee," said Charles Gray, a 2011 graduate. "It really makes me want to work harder, since they've invested so much in me.

Naval Facilities Engineering Command: The Facilities and Expeditionary Combat Systems Command NAVFAC is the Systems Command that delivers and maintains quality, sustainable facilities, acquires and manages capabilities for the Navy's expeditionary combat forces, provides contingency engineering response, and enables energy security and environmental stewardship. Additional updates and information about NAVFAC can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/navfac and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/navfac.