#ThrowbackThursday Army Cuts

Welcome to #ThrowbackThursday, InsideDefense.com's weekly look back at what was happening on this day in years past.

On July 9, 2009, Gen. James Cartwright, then vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was on Capitol Hill, promising the Pentagon would find the money to pay for a significant jump in the Army's active-duty end strength. The Senate Armed Services Committee had approved an increase of 30,000 more troops in fiscal years 2011 and 2012 -- if sufficient funding were included in the military's budget those years.

The Pentagon believes "there is a case for something between about 15,000 and 25,000" soldiers, and a 30,000-soldier increase "would give us the range in which to work to allow us to do that," Cartwright said. "Resourcing is going to be a challenge, but we believe . . . we'll find that money, if it's necessary to find it internally, to do that."

Today, the Army is meeting with reporters to discuss its plan to cut end-strength by 40,000 troops within the next several years.