As the economy roars, the military falls to thousands of people without recruiting goals

For years, the military has been moving in the other direction. Compulsory budget cuts caused the army to lose more than 100,000 soldiers from 2010 to 2016. Not only did the army recruit fewer soldiers, but it also forced troops to leave the country. He was on the verge of reducing to 450,000 soldiers in 2017, when Mr. Trump faced the situation. Realizing a campaign promise to end the withdrawal, he signed a bill that brought the army to 476,000 people. This year it was expected to reach 483,500, but the actual numbers have remained stable.

The Navy, the Air Force and the Marine Corps have reached their recruitment targets for 2018, but the Army, which is by far the largest branch of the military, had to recruit more than twice as many troops as the other branches. Initially, the army planned to recruit 80,000 troops in 2018, but reduced its target to 76,500 in April because it was able to retain more soldiers already in the force. This left a much larger task than normal for army recruiters in a booming economy.

In an emergency care facility in suburban Denver on Friday, Josh Griffin, a high school student, had just completed a drug test for a new job at a discount tire company. He said that the recruiters had spoken to him in high school and that the military seemed attractive at first: money for the university, a stable job and a way to give back to his country.

But now he sees better options, he said, adding, "I have no doubt about the possibility of finding a job.

The military's promise of tuition and other college benefits is less interesting, the sergeant said. First Class Michael T. Peppers, the commander of a mall recruiting station next to a subway and a Tasty Tacos in Urbandale, Iowa.

"We are competing with other companies offering the same things," he said, noting that even McDonald's has a program to help employees pay tuition.

The army also says that it must choose among young adults who are less and less qualified to serve because of mental health issues, criminal convictions or obesity.