[CHDIRAUX-L] State of the Coast Guard -003/08

[Chief Director of the Auxiliary Announcement List]

To:   ALAUX
From: CHDIRAUX
Subj: State of the Coast Guard -003/08

1.  FYI - Frm ADM Allen:


To the Men and Women of the Coast Guard:

This afternoon, I will deliver my second State of the Coast Guard address at
the National Press Club here in Washington, DC. It will focus on our future
- the strategy, legislation, and budget we need to build a 21st Century
Coast Guard.

Since becoming Commandant, I've traveled across the country and around the
world to meet with many of you personally. You asked questions and shared
what was on your minds. In turn, I made a commitment to you that we would
provide the equipment, support and training you need do your jobs more
efficiently and effectively. I pledged to continue to recapitalize our aging
fleet and command and control systems, and we are seeing the results of
those efforts right now, with CGC BERTHOLF completing sea trials this week,
and with the missionization of three new HC-144 Ocean Sentry maritime patrol
aircraft. We are well underway in our reorganization of the force structure
to make us more agile, flexible and adaptable in an ever-changing
environment.

I asked you to be patient and embrace change, because it is an enduring part
of our lives in the Coast Guard. You heard me and stepped up to the plate.
We've made significant progress across all fronts to modernize and transform
the service over the past year and a half. More importantly, we've stayed
focused on mission execution, making 2007 another incredible year that will
go down in the record books.

However, we cannot rest on our reputation or remain fixated on our wake. Now
is the time to build a 21st Century Coast Guard, one that will be responsive
to the environment as it evolves around us. As a unique instrument of
national security, we will work closer than ever with the U.S. Navy and
Marine Corps to put our cooperative maritime strategy in action. As
America's lifesavers and guardians, we will enhance our marine safety
program, develop our intelligence and maritime domain awareness, and take
action to restore our polar icebreaking fleet, as we prepare to operate in
an open Arctic. We also need to grow the Coast Guard. We cannot continue to
meet the ever growing needs and higher expectations of our citizens with a
workforce that is essentially no bigger than it was 50 years ago. That is
why I will fight for every penny of the President's FY09 $9.3 billion budget
request. It is a down payment on the future of America's Coast Guard.

As much as I have talked about change, some things never change, like our
Guardian Ethos. Each of you has been integral to our success this year and
the milestones we reached, such as the removal of a record-breaking 350,000
pounds of cocaine at sea, and our celebration of a million lives saved since
1790. Never before has this Nation relied so heavily on our oceans and
waterways for the safety, security and prosperity of all Americans. And
never before has this Nation relied so much on its Coast Guard to protect
the environment and our keep our communities safe and secure. We will answer
that call.

All threats. All hazards. Always ready.

Admiral Thad Allen
Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard

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