{"id":384619,"date":"2011-04-21T17:32:14","date_gmt":"2011-04-21T17:32:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/04\/21\/pentagon-budget-time-to-cut\/"},"modified":"2011-04-21T17:32:14","modified_gmt":"2011-04-21T17:32:14","slug":"pentagon-budget-time-to-cut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/04\/21\/pentagon-budget-time-to-cut\/","title":{"rendered":"PENTAGON BUDGET: TIME TO CUT"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\"Obama's By Charles Riley, staff reporter<\/span>April 21, 2011: 11:50 AM ET<\/span><\/p>\n

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — In the final days of the 2011 budget debate, lawmakers gave the Pentagon a small boost, while they slashed funding for almost every other government agency.<\/p>\n

But the Pentagon wanted tens of billions more. Still, lawmakers refused to pony up, a sign that Washington’s budget cutting ambition<\/a> might soon creep into the defense budget.<\/p>\n

Since 2001, defense spending has just about doubled, rising to almost $700 billion in 2010. That is more than half of the discretionary budget and about 20% of the entire federal budget.<\/p>\n

A few months ago, budget experts stood alone, clamoring for steep reductions in military spending to help put the nation back on a sustainable path.<\/p>\n

Most politicians, however, displayed no such appetite.<\/p>\n

Now cracks in the armor are starting to emerge.<\/p>\n

Last week, President Obama backtracked<\/a> on his earlier budget and outlined a new plan that would cut security spending by $400 billion by 2023.<\/p>\n

“It’s a meaningful cut, but not catastrophic,” said Gordon Adams, a professor at American University’s School of International Service and a former Clinton administration budget official who specialized in defense spending.<\/p>\n

The impact of that cut is likely to be blunted because it includes the entire national security apparatus, including parts of the Departments of Homeland Security and Energy.<\/p>\n

But the Pentagon will have to surrender its pound of flesh.<\/p>\n

Why the sudden willingness to target the Pentagon? The biggest reason is that Washington has a wicked case of budget-cutting fever.<\/p>\n

“You can’t solve the budget problem without defense being on the table,” Adams said. And that fever? “This is a tidal wave that will take over everything.”<\/p>\n

Already, several credible fiscal plans<\/a> have called for reducing Pentagon spending by $1 trillion over the next ten years or so.<\/p>\n

In the long-run, Adams believes that defense reductions will be closer to the $1 trillion figure than the $400 billion Obama has proposed.<\/p>\n

Even with cuts of that magnitude, the military would retain its position as the world’s best fighting force, with unmatched capabilities on land, at sea and in the air.<\/p>\n

The military has long had staunch protectors on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers who hold key committee seats have been able to use their influence to funnel money to the Pentagon.<\/p>\n

Now, with spending cuts all the rage, their dominance might be waning.<\/p>\n

Already, the new breed Tea Party Republicans have broken ranks, voting with Democrats to strip funding for a backup F-35 engine program that lawmakers have funded for years.<\/p>\n

“There is a circular firing squad going on in the Republican party right now,” Adams said. “This issue is far from resolved within the party.”<\/p>\n

Adams said he has no doubt the Pentagon is now entering a “build-down” phase, as it often does when conflicts wind down. But what exactly will be cut? And who will be there to usher in the cuts?<\/p>\n

Obama might still be in the White House a few years from now, but Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mike Mullen, are both headed toward retirement.<\/p>\n

Changes in the defense leadership team might impact how the Pentagon adapts to lower funding levels.<\/p>\n

The Pentagon spends about half of its budget on troops and support services for them. A reduction in funds will likely lead to a reduction in the number of soldiers in the armed forces.<\/p>\n

Another option is a narrowing of the military’s mission, and a move away from the counterinsurgency and nation building activities necessitated by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.<\/p>\n

The military could also achieve significant savings by reforming its health care insurance and retirement programs<\/a>, which are costing more every year. And there are always weapons systems that could be eliminated.<\/p>\n

No matter the cuts, Adams said other nations aren’t likely to approach the military capabilities enjoyed by the U.S.<\/p>\n

“American military superiority is awesome,” Adams said. “That’s the only word to describe it. It’s stunning.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Charles Riley, staff reporter April 21, 2011: 11:50 AM ET NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — In the final days of the 2011 budget debate, lawmakers gave the Pentagon a small boost, while they slashed funding for almost every other government agency. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-384619","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"\nPENTAGON BUDGET: TIME TO CUT - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/04\/21\/pentagon-budget-time-to-cut\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"PENTAGON BUDGET: TIME TO CUT - 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