US Army misses recruiting goal; other services squeak by

By LOLITA C. BALDOR
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Army fell about 15,000 soldiers — or 25% — short of its recruitment goal this year, despite a frantic effort to make up the widely expected gap in a year when all the military services struggled in a tight jobs market to find young people willing and fit to enlist. While the Army was the only service that didn’t meet its target, all the others had to dig deep into their pools of delayed entry applicants, which will put them behind as they begin the next recruiting year on Saturday. The worsening problem is stirring debate about whether America’s fighting force should be restructured or reduced in size.