Show of force: National Guard enjoys more political sway.

• Author: Pappalardo, Joe

As the National Guard's use and reputation grows, its political clout is likewise increasing. Once an afterthought in terms of funding, training and resources, the Guard now is pushing Congress and White House to adopt an ambitious agenda.

High on the Guard's list are expanding health care for troops, improving the pay status of fliers, restoring funding dedicated to the anti-narcotics efforts and capturing the assurance that deployments will have adequate warning and limited duration.

The Guard also is seeking to be equipped on par with the active force. Many Guardsmen have been deployed to combat areas with Vietnam-era equipment and have been asked to stay beyond their expected deployments. On the home front of the war against terrorism, the Guard has assumed the lead military response role.

So far, many in Congress have demonstrated support far Guard initiatives, and haw expressed a willingness to pay for the profound restructuring and address other priorities. The Defense Department, on the other hand, is not always ready to accede to each demand, which sets the stage for a fight in Congress for funding.

"There is a growing awareness that the Guard is moving from a strategic reserve and has in fact become an operational force," Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard, told National Defense. "I think Congress is acutely attuned to the fact that the Guard is the essential part of national defense, at home and abroad."

The main organ for petitioning Congress is the National Guard Association of the United States, or NGAUS. The bi-partisan group represents 45,000 former National Guard officers, and was formed in 1878 to lobby Congress for better equipment, better support and training equal to active forces. That goal, NGAUS notes in its mission statement, has not changed.

"Congress is listening more because of the importance of the National Guard and its new uses," said Maj. Gen. William E. Ingram, Jr., adjutant general of North Carolina. "The major players [in Congress] have always understood, but more are understanding drat now, since 9/11."

A newer role on the national political stage is the organization's hosting of presidential candidates to explain their positions on military issues. The centerpiece demonstration of NGAUS' political sway is the National Guard's annual conference. It has been a high-profile presidential campaign spot since 1992, when Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton gave speeches before the...