NPR addresses the question of what size is right for the U.S. Army: “With the U.S. military out of Iraq and winding down in Afghanistan, the U.S. Army, which peaked with a force of around 570,000 a few years ago, was supposed to drop to around 490,000 troops.”  

“But U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said that’s still too big.”  

“‘An Army of this size is larger than required to meet the demands of our defense strategy,’ Hagel told a news conference in February.”  

“Translation? Hagel isn’t planning on occupying any countries. So he wants to cut the Army to about 450,000.”  

“But that’s a number that some generals say places the country at greater risk.”