Gates proposing program cuts in military budget

[nhboy]

Link

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- Defense Secretary Robert Gates is announcing the latest round of cost-cutting measures for the military, including a plan to do away with a new amphibious vehicle that can ferry troops to shore while under fire.

The plan is aimed at staving off potentially deeper cuts by the White House or Congress by showing that the Pentagon is taking seriously a call to rein in the nation's deficit.

The Defense Department is responsible for the biggest piece of discretionary spending in the federal government's annual budget."

 

[Pushrod]

Link

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- Defense Secretary Robert Gates is announcing the latest round of cost-cutting measures for the military, including a plan to do away with a new amphibious vehicle that can ferry troops to shore while under fire.

The plan is aimed at staving off potentially deeper cuts by the White House or Congress by showing that the Pentagon is taking seriously a call to rein in the nation's deficit.

The Defense Department is responsible for the biggest piece of discretionary spending in the federal government's annual budget."

Wasn't this done under Carter's regime? How did that turn out?

 

[Vince]

Why is it when they are looking for money, and budget cuts, the first place they look is the military?? How about looking at money leaving this country for the spending in other countries?

Oh no, we couldn't do that. That might ruin foreign relations with countries that we really don't have or want foreign relations with anyway.

 

[philibusters]

Why is it when they are looking for money, and budget cuts, the first place they look is the military?? How about looking at money leaving this country for the spending in other countries?

Oh no, we couldn't do that. That might ruin foreign relations with countries that we really don't have or want foreign relations with anyway.

If you are going to balance the budget you almost have to have some military cuts. What gets cut first is a tricky issue, you can argue something else should get cut first, but in the end it has to be recognized all areas would have to have cuts.

Why is defense spending such a big target right now--because so much is spent on it. According to Tilted numbers in the other thread, there is 6 billion tax dollars collected per day (thats wrong, but if you take the amount of tax dollars collected in the year and divided by 365, that is what I am getting at). So you have 6 billion dollars to work with (though we just run huge deficits). 2.3 billion dollars is spent per day on defense spending. That means at our current tax rate- if we had a balance budget and did not cut defense spending almost 40% of our tax dollars would go to defense spending.

Its a common target because it is so expensive.

So if in order to balance our budget we would have to drop overall spending by 40% and defense spending is too big of an area to leave untouched. That is not saying defense spending alone should be targeted. That is not what Obama has done either. He has not really devised a plan yet that I know of, so who knows what he will do, but this is the military trying to anticipate Obama by trying to control the discussion by putting out a realistic spending cut plan first I think.

 

[Nonno]

Gates outlines plans to cut $78 billion in program

Gates outlines plans to cut $78 billion in programs, 70,000 troops

"WASHINGTON — Defense officials will slash $78 billion in program spending and begin cutting up to 70,000 soldiers and Marines as federal budget officials tighten the purse strings on military spending.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said none of the end strength cuts are immediate, but in the next five years, officials will begin trimming about 49,000 soldiers from the Army and up to 20,000 Marines from the Corps. He could not say how long the process may take, but it is expected to save about $6 billion and help close an anticipated $24 billion hole in defense spending.

“Ever since taking this post, now four years ago, I’ve called for protecting force structure and maintaining modest but real growth in the defense top line over the long term,” Gates said in a Pentagon press conference Thursday. “But this country’s dire fiscal situation and the threat it poses to American influence and credibility around the world will only get worse unless the U.S. government gets its finances in order.”

Read more here.

 

[BOP]

Gates outlines plans to cut $78 billion in programs, 70,000 troops

"WASHINGTON — Defense officials will slash $78 billion in program spending and begin cutting up to 70,000 soldiers and Marines as federal budget officials tighten the purse strings on military spending.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said none of the end strength cuts are immediate, but in the next five years, officials will begin trimming about 49,000 soldiers from the Army and up to 20,000 Marines from the Corps. He could not say how long the process may take, but it is expected to save about $6 billion and help close an anticipated $24 billion hole in defense spending.

“Ever since taking this post, now four years ago, I’ve called for protecting force structure and maintaining modest but real growth in the defense top line over the long term,” Gates said in a Pentagon press conference Thursday. “But this country’s dire fiscal situation and the threat it poses to American influence and credibility around the world will only get worse unless the U.S. government gets its finances in order.”

Read more here.

$6 billion dollar savings? Pffft....that's $6 billion dollars that Congress will spend like drunken whoores.