The Pentagon Budget...Leading Dem candidates don't see this as a problem

[ErasureAcer]

I hate, yes hate, as in won't vote for these front-running democratic candidates, because they won't cut this piece of crap budget one cent.

None of the "electable"(not my words) candidates plan on cutting this budget.

Don't people who support these candidates see this as one, if not the biggest problem facing the USA?

This budget is out of control. And when we, the people, give them money...they lose 1 trillion dollars!!!!!! The Pentagon should not get one fucking dime until they recover that money...that someone dissappeared.

Furthermore, this is money they're getting. Not only are they scaring the world and our allies with the huge force we've accumalated...the money that goes to this department is money that could be well spend elsewhere. Education, health care for all, social security, new (peaceful) technology, research for cures to diseases and so forth.

Really now. It is of my opinion if you support a candidate who isn't promising to cut pentagon spending by 10%, then you are doing no good for this nation.

What really is the difference between Bush and Dean(or any front leading democratic candidate) when they both want a 400 billion dollar defense budget? I think Democrats, especially at this board, settle for anything...and that is why the party has gone down since the early 90's.

There is no money for any social programs. We're giving 1 billion dollars a month to Iraq, another 1 billion to Afghanistan. Why? Because we have our foot in the door and Bush, nor the Democratic leading contenders want to slam the door shut now that is open. This is a horrible stance...for if we don't sacrifice our foot now, we're gonna lose more than a foot in these situations...financially especially.

America is about America. We should put ourselves first and foremost and let the other countries of the world deal with their own problems. We should only work with the UN and thus cut the pentagon budget anywhere from 60 to 10 percent. We don't need standing armies in the Philipines, South Korea, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Iraq or anywhere else. It is a waste of money that does not affect us.

If there truly is a threat to American borders...we must have faith in the UN system...that our allies will come to help us when there is a threat.

Because we can not trust, and because our Democratic and Republican leaders of the past 50 years have decided to build an American Empire over the world, dictating every world situation...we've payed the price...as Americans.

We've payed with shitty schools(I'm a product of one...as are most of you), shitty healthcare, shitty jobs, and shitty everything else.

Really now. Any Presidential candidate who is saying to leave Pentagon spending where it is at now(for any reason they came up with out of their ass), is just leading the USA down the same road of EMPIRE!

I SAY NO TO EMPIRE!!!!!!
IF YOU HAVE A HEART, YOU'D SAY NO TOO!

ELECT DENNIS KUCINICH DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE.
MAKE AMERICA AND THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE.

[AnAmerican]

1. Ditto on every word

Dennis is the candidate who is telling the truth about the defense budget. It IS bloated, it IS wasteful. We CAN do better. We can STILL have efficient, powerful armed forces with which we can protect ourselves. The WASTE is what needs to go.

[blm]

2. I agree with Dennis, too...

but, in fairness Kerry wants to cut out Star Wars and the smaller nukes that Bush put in the budget.

[kentuck]

3. You make an excellent point.

The outrageous Defense budget has become conventional wisdom for all politicians...it's supposed to like that...it's the natural order of things.

[Clete]

4. So while I was waiting for Symbolman

to come on Lou Dobbs and I must have turned my head because I missed his sentence, Dobbs also had a clip about Vets who can't get medical care unless they wait months and sometimes years for an appointment. On another program they had a story about supplies finally reaching our boys in Iraq, stuff like porta-potties, underwear and other basic necessities of life that they have been doing without.

I think it is so disgraceful. I don't mind my tax money going for a good military, but I want to see it go to the guys, whose lives are on the line, to get the supplies they need while they are in action and medical care for life after they are out of it.

[ErasureAcer]

5. kick

:kick:

[berry]

6. Definitely agree about military spending as well as the absurd

idea that if we just have a military that is a zillion times bigger and stronger than any other nation on earth, we will be safe. And of course we will be even less safe if that military is used, and even less if it is used unjustly (as is currently the case).

I do, however, think that we should not become so isolationist as to refuse to offer foreign aid, emergency relief, etc. I think that a lot of our current aid packages are military-related--arms, training, etc. and politically motivated. I'm not sure what form aid should take--maybe debt relief, loans or even grants to poor countries, patent waivers (on expensive medicines), famine relief, increased numbers of Fulbright grants to foreigners, etc., etc. We need a national discussion about our role in the world. I do think that as we are a part of the world, we must not cut ourselves off--just stop making the military our primary agent for foreign relations.

Oh--one more point. Didn't the DoD use to be called the War Department? Even if that's apocryphal, I do think that we should push for the euphemism "Defense" to be dropped, and for it to be called the "War Department." It might make people THINK about what that money is going towards. (I also love Kucinich's proposal for a Peace Department.)

[ErasureAcer]

9. Excuse me, we should NOT be training other nations' soldiers

We shouldn't be in the philipines training those guys. We shouldn't have trained thousands of central americans at the school of americas. by training these people, we're playing sides. Who are we to be the judge and jury of civil wars within countries? We're nobody.

STOP TRAINING OTHER COUNTRIES HOW TO KILL!!!

[diamond14]

13. Ramos trained at West Point...surely, we need to stop training

soldiers from other countries...it's just mission creep...and all that 'humanitarian' stuff is just more mission creep...it sounds good, but in reality, the military is only good at one thing: KILLING...

in addition, I would like to see the Veterans' budgets all put into the Defense budget, so that people realize how much wars really cost...without shrub's wars, we wouldn't have thousands of injured Veterans needing medical and mental care for the rest of their lives...if people realized that THAT care is part of war, they might be hesitant to take on these 'pre-emptive' wars with those kind of costs...

[berry]

35. Whew! I understand that you feel strongly about this--in fact, I do too.

I also acknowledge that my post might not have been clear enough. But I did NOT (and would not EVER) support military training for other nations' soldiers. OR arms sales, for that matter. You misrepresented my views.

But your instant assumption that I am the enemy, your willingness to attack without carefully reading my post--oh well, I'm too distressed by your post to go on. Forget it.

edited to add a missing word.

[MR. ELECTABLE]

7. Dean's "Defense Budget" isn't all defense....

Dean wants to cancel the "Star Wars" missile defense program and halt work on any other programs which violate the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. Instead of funding these programs, he plans on using the money saved to fund alternative fuel research (independence from oil is important for national defense, no?), hiring more firefighters/policemen/first responders, homeland security programs such as shipment container inspectors, guarding nuclear power plants/nuclear waste sites, and finally dismantling nukes sitting unguarded in the soviet union.

These issues actually address national defense instead of making more weapons to launch over the middle east-- and I feel there expense IS JUSTIFIED.

[ErasureAcer]

10. That would fall under "homeland security" wouldn't it?

And the energy stuff under the energy budget.

Dean said he wouldn't drop pentagon spending as long as there are terrorists out there(which will be forever).

So, basically, what you're telling me...and with his quote...is that he isn't going to drop the pentagon budget...but with that, increase the energy and homeland security budgets.

[FubarFly]

45. Do you have a link?

"Dean said he wouldn't drop pentagon spending as long as there are terrorists out there(which will be forever)."

That's one hell of a bombshell to drop on Dean supporters. I hope you can back it up. It would be a shame if you put a wonderful candidate like Dennis Kucinich in an unfavorable light, by unfairly smearing Howard Dean.

[newyawker99]

36. Hi TacoUnderpants!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[RichM]

8. Dems (aside from DK) are just as bad as Repubs in this entire area -

The M-I complex is a monster that lies right at the heart of the American economy. Both parties have played the game of building it ever since WWII. Accordingly, both parties have cooperated in making it routine practise to terrify the American public with hype about foreign evil-doers ("communism" or "terrorism"), to justify the pumping up of M-I spending.

If at any point along the way either Dems or Repubs would have tried to say, "But folks, really now, the threat isn't really as bad as you've been led to believe," the other side would immediately have hit with accusations of "being soft on defense."

So the inevitable has happened: it long ago became impossible to speak the truth. Today, only guys like DK are willing to even try -- and he's regarded as nuts for it. The truth is, M-I spending could be cut by a hell of a lot more than 10%, in terms of meeting any justifiable defense need.

The money poured down the defense rathole has not been connected to rational processes of thought for decades. The insiders know perfectly well that this has everything to do with wealth, juicy contracts, connections & influence. But the language surrounding the whole matter is unfailingly pious & self-righteous, with tones of patriotism and "defending our people" laid on thick. Anyone who wants to spoil the gravy train by making the language come back to earth, to match the honest reality is of course a threat to the insiders -- who will gladly destroy such interlopers, rather than give up their lucrative scams.

This is one of the major reasons why the US has become an increasingly disgusting country -- powerful interests here DEPEND on the above-sketched sort of dishonesty. They NEED to destroy those who want to speak the truth about where all this money goes.

And this is also a reason why the Dem Dummies who want to draft General Clark are so firmly on the wrong path. Instead of shining the light of truth on this entire area, they want to play the same old game of proving that Dems are just as "tough on defense" as Republicans -- thereby RE-AFFIRMING in the public mind all the old lies about how the evil-doers are out there "threatening our security." This old game of hyping & lying about external threats has got to stop, or our country will go to hell.

The entire history of the M-I complex is a great illustration of how the longer you maintain a certain lie, the harder it becomes to ever speak the truth again.

[ErasureAcer]

12. Thank you, and that's why the DUers here must drop their candidates...

and support Kucinich.

Do these people actually think there is a difference between Dean and Bush? It is very slim.

You listen to Dean and here him say..."I want my country back!"

Well sadly, Dean isn't doing jackshit to get the country back from the biggest industry out there, the industry that makes all those weapons.

They control the country...not us, the people. Let's take this country back by voting for Kucinich. Let's cut the DoD down to size. Let's stop fighting wars that aren't there. Let's start giving the money to our schools and health programs and institutes to end poverty, let's make sure every child has a 3 meal day.

Come on now people. COME ON! I challenge you to make a real change in 2004. Let's stop the chain of the Pentagon running our country into the ground...let's cut off our money to them...only Kucinich can do it.

[Terwilliger]

17. I would love to help out

but they won't let Dennis get close enough to winning, and there's no way that he'd be allowed to do that

[ErasureAcer]

26. I think if you actually address this issue one on one with the people...

they'd side with Dennis. That is my duty as Dennis supporter to address this all with you.

If you ask an American to have a more peaceful world, where they can afford to go college, have healthcare, and

or if they'd rather have the new cluster bomb that can fit on the new vs7-t4 plane that can go one knot faster than the last plane, upgraded nuclear arms(light and huge), and a standing army in half the world.

what would they rather choose? Surely, we don't need an army with all the latest gadgets. We already have surmounted a total so huge we outspend everyone else. No one can match our navy, airforce or marines. Only China stands a half-decent chance with their army...and that's just because they have a huge army.

Really now, what is this threat that we need conventional weapons upgraded?

Fighting terrorism should be an intelligence and defensive measure. Not an offensive measure where we attack nations with terrorists in them. It is a lot less cheaper and more productive for money being spend. It makes us look like good guys in the world...just defending and not blowing up innoncent civilians or the criminals by proclaiming we're god...and we can decide who lives and who dies.

Truly now...we can cut so much. But most people are so afraid yet don't even know the facts. This goes back to our education system(which isn't funded because of this), our media and our government(lying).

The front running Democrats don't want to face the truth...that there is no threat to America. They want to play along with the charade...lie to the people. This is politics...the democrats are playing politics instead of playing the issues.

The day that first happened was the day democracy died.

Ressurrect this country and vote for Kucinich. We deserve what the republicans and democrats have kept from us for so long...education, healthcare, peace, prosperity, equal rights and so forth.

Dennis said it best..."Dare to dream".

Seems to me most of the people here and in the democratic party are cowards. they have killed america!

[Terwilliger]

32. he's got my vote

[Individualist]

53. "that's why the DUers here must

drop their candidates"???? Reality check - you don't tell me who to support or not support!

[theriverburns]

11. Dean on MTP

came out and stated cold fact that he will not cut Pentagon spending. For that reason he will never get my vote. Take away his anti-war stance and the guy is a better looking, WASP version of Joe Lieberman.

[Pastiche423]

34. That is not true

Dean did not even say the word "pentagon" once during his MTP interview.

Therefore, it is not a "cold hard fact that he will not cut Pentagon spending".

http://www.msnbc.com/news/912159.asp?cp1=1

[revcarol]

37. I heard Dean say that we cannot reduce "defense spending"

"in this time of terror." Russert.
Almost dropped my teeth!! Playing Bush's game of equating "defense spending" with "fighting terror."

That and AIPAC with Dean, Kucinich is THE MAN!!

[Muddleoftheroad]

40. What man?

The man who won't get elected? Advocating big cuts to the defense budget is a sure way to guarantee a * victory.

[FubarFly]

41. He said that we may not have to reduce spending.

Big difference.

He also said that he was opposed to increases in defense spending.

Dean's goal is to balance the budget, if he has to cut the Defense budget to do it then he will. He is sensitive about giving the impression that he is making the US a less secure place in a post 9/11 environment. If he came right out and said he favors huge defense cuts, he would have been hammered mercilessly for it.

Here's what Dean actually said:


Russert: But you would consider increasing the payroll tax? Meet the Press
Dean: Absolutely. You don’t have to increase the amount of the payroll tax, you increase the salary that it’s applied to. You see what I mean?
Russert: Yes.
Dean: $85,000, maybe you raise it to $100,000 or whatever the numbers are. We’ve got to look at the numbers to figure out what you do. You get the Social Security problem off the table first by fixing it and then not allowing the Congress to keep taking money out of the trust fund. The president’s financing his tax cuts by taking money out of the Social Security trust fund. That’s ridiculous—first. Secondly, what do you do about the budget? You restrain spending. You do not have to actually make cuts in things like Medicare or in things like Medicaid or even in Defense. What you have to do is restrain the increases in spending.
Russert: When the Republicans tried to limit the growth, the Democrats said that was an actual cut.
Dean: Well, they’re going to say what they’re going to say. All I...
Russert: You would be willing to limit the growth...
Dean: Absolutely.
Russert: ...in Defense, in Medicare and Social Security?
Dean: You have to do that. If you don’t go where the money is—Social Security, we’re going to fix differently. We’re not talking about Social Security. We’re talking about Medicare. We’re talking about Defense and we’re talking about all the other things the federal government does. But I want to put the tax cut back into that budget. They need it to balance the budget.

---

If I honestly believed Dean was steadfastly opposed to cutting the Defense budget, I would be concerned too.

[revcarol]

44. You just left out the "time of terror" quote.

Big blast on DU when he said it, so I'm not the only one.

Now he's weaseling. "Sure, we gotta have that balanced budget when the nation needs an influx of infrastructure money to stimulate the economy and rebuild the schools, bridges, etc. that have been left to rot under Domenici's balanced budget(everything for defense, nothing for domestic programs and infrastructure.)

And sure, we gotta have that balanced budget without cutting defense, but since I'm getting some flak from people who don't want to mortgage their children's future to the "defense" budget, I'll just change my tune to sound moderate."

[FubarFly]

47. You're interpretation of his position is different from my own.

I can respect that. I would also love to see a President Kucinich. However in my mind, Senator Kucinich is preferable.

The reason is this. I expect compromises from Howard Dean. I think that compromise is essential in order to win the Presidency. I also believe that Howard Dean is a good man who wants to help this country.
If he has to manipulate his image to do this, he will. Now I can guess that that won't sit well with you, and I can understand that. But I honestly believe that to become a President in this day in age, you have to play by the rules already in place, before you can change them. Dean is being as consistent as he can be, while also being politically astute.

Kucinich on the other hand, I don't want to see compromise. I respect him for his ethical integrity. I think if he became a Senator he could both retain his dignity and do amazing work for the progressive cause. Paul Wellstone was a hero of mine, and I would like to see Dennis Kucinich carry on his legacy.

[Pastiche423]

57. What is the "time of error" quote?

[FubarFly]

58. I believe this is the quote taken out of context:

“I don’t agree with Dennis about cutting the Pentagon budget when we’re in the middle of a difficulty with terror attacks.”

My take on his stand is based on the entirety of my knowledge about Dean, not just the one quote:

Although Dean may advocate keeping the Defense budget at current levels, he doesn't advocate spending it in the same manner. If there is unnecessary pork in the Defense budget,I believe the fiscally conservative Dean will either cut it, or put it to better use. He doesn't come out and say this directly, because he doesn't want to be tagged as weak on Defense, as most progressive Democrats, including Kucinich, already are.

I certainly can understand how a non-Dean supporter could read it differently.

[SharonAnn]

14. Where is the Money?

Check out this Website:

Where Is The Money?

A New Interactive Web Site Hits You in the Face Over the Enron-Style Looting of the US Treasury and What It Means to You Personally

A Political Reality Check for California's Political Circus

http://fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/080803_where_money.html

[terryg11]

18. thanks for the link

so are you an Iowan or just like our state flag and motto?

[SharonAnn]

29. I was raised in Iowa and love much about the state.

Since leaving there I've lived in Omaha, Chicago, Dayton (OH), Atlanta, Los Angeles, and am now in the Knoxville (TN) area.

The thing I miss most about Iowa is the straight-forward, practical, rational approach we take to things (most of the time, anyway). i love watching the Iowa town hall meetings on C-Span, make me so homesick I could cry. People asking real questions. A rare thing indeed.

And I'm stuck here in right-wing, fundamentalist, xenophobic country.

[G_j]

55. thanks

I added the link to my signature...

[poskonig]

15. Would we like to win in 2004?

Claiming to cut the DoD (while it needs to be done) in the 911 era is a recipe for political disaster. Many of our candidates are already perceived as weak on defense; if they are going to cut it, they should do it quietly after they win the election.

If candidates want Kucinich's polling numbers, perhaps they should follow his lead and paint themselves as anti-military now.

[Terwilliger]

16. So...Kucinich is anti-military?

and, if he isn't, aren't you spreading false information as a Deanie?

[poskonig]

19. Kucinich is painting himself as anti-military.

I applaud what Kucinich is doing, but Democrats *will* get torn to shreds if they choose to fight this particular battle now. I can see it now:

"Senator Kerry wants to surrender to Islamic terrorists," etc.

We are going to have a hard enough time fixing Iraq and removing Bush's tax giveaway to the wealthy. "Democrats are Bushlite because they won't stop military pork" isn't a legitimate criticism of Democratic candidates in 2004 unless we really, really want them to lose.

[RichM]

23. What do you mean by "fixing Iraq?" Who is supposedly trying to do that?

The Busheviks only want to plunder it; they don't want to fix it. Who supposedly really wants to fix it?

[ErasureAcer]

28. I don't wanna fix Iraq...

I want the Iraqi people to fix Iraq.

Get our troops out of there NOW.

And if Saddam comes back...do what we should have done in the first place. NOTHING.

Let the Iraqi people deal with their own problems.

As Patrick Henry said, "Give me Liberty or give me death". The Iraqi people apparently were happy with their "liberty" or they would have attacked themselves...thus no problems.

[Muddleoftheroad]

38. Nice sense of empathy

Just let everyone else fend for themselves. Let me ask you, would you have lifted a hand to aid Jews who were persecuted under Hitler? Would you have supporting sending U.S. troops to the Balkans? Do you support foreign aid?

I opposed the damn invasion, but we are there now and can't just walk away.

[RichM]

48. Your analogy is exactly wrong, 180 degrees out of phase with the truth.

In this case, the United States is most analogous to Hitler; not to any sort of "helping" force. The purpose of the US occupation of Iraq is to plunder their country for oil, & subjugate the people. We would "help" them by walking away, & ceasing to rob & dominate them. (Of course, there is an excellent argument to be made for paying them reparations.)

About "foreign aid" - do you know the US gives less foreign aid than any developed country as a % of GDP? It's about 0.1%. And that most of what is officially classified as "foreign aid" is actually weapons, or money given with the string attached that the recipient has to buy US-made weapons with it? Is that the kind of "foreign aid" you think is so generous?

[Muddleoftheroad]

52. Aid

First off, I don't think our soldiers want to plunder oil or anything else and they are the ones there. If you take them away, the place will dissolve into civil war and that will not be good. Even worse, Saddam might come back and bring retribution for all those who dared oppose him.

No, we can't do that.

As for foreign aid, I'd love to see more -- food, medicine, infrastructure, etc. See us direct some toward Africa for instance and forget trying to send any aid to nations that are enemies or as close as possible to being so. These include both North Korea and Saudi Arabia.

[Terwilliger]

25. or. we'll lose because the Democratic party can't stand up

and deliver the truth to anybody...they can't lead...they can't inspire...they can't cajole...they can't win.

Truly pathetic, and THATS the attitude you're employing "Oh if only we were better Republicans! Than they'd love us!" :eyes: :nuke:

[terryg11]

20. I don't know

I think it shows real guts to talk about cutting it and even some brains if they can back up that talk with a sound reason why.

what he should do is hand out copies of a few frontline or NOW with Bill Moyers shows from the past year or so to help explain wht he is talking about.

[ErasureAcer]

22. Not with Dean we aren't

He has already proven to be a liar on social security.

I guess lying isn't morally wrong in the dean camp. One more great reason backing my thesis that Dean is Bush lite. Lies, lies and more lies...by him or his supporters.

[poskonig]

24. Old news.

Dean didn't remember he made a suggestion about social security in 1995 and apologized for it.

Your post looks like Dean-envy to me. Dean is going to be painted as the candidate of terrorism, queers, and taxes by the GOP -- this doesn't sound like a Bush-lite candidate to me.

[ErasureAcer]

27. Yeah, that's why he said just a month earlier on MTP how he liked 68

Dean supporters not telling the whole truth once again.

In my book, that's a liar.

[poskonig]

30. Did Dean not apologize?

In addition, on MTP Dean talked offhand about how raising the social security age was an option to fixing its longterm problems. However, Dean has repeatedly stated that lifting the ceiling on the monies collected for social security is the way he would prefer to fix it.

I'm not sure where your problem is.

[ErasureAcer]

31. My problem is infront of a shit load of peole...

he basically called Kucinich a liar, when it was actually Dean who was lying.

Dean should personally call everyone in the audience and everyone who viewed the show and say..."I lied, Kucinich was right".

Posting some comment on your website isn't good enough. He was just trying to save on to your vote with that remark.

Did Dean personally apoligize to Kucinich? Did he call the Big K up and say...I'm sorry for lying to you and bending the truth of my previous statements?

If he didn't...Dean is a big jerk.

[poskonig]

33. Kucinich was very disrepectful that evening.

Gephardt got it a lot worse than Dean. Kucinich even asked Geppy a question after Gephardt had given his answer.

Dean's a pretty nice guy who brings people together, not divides them. Dean forgot what he wrote in some insignifcant paper way back in 1995. BFD. Again, Dean publically apologized for not knowing this. There are no hard feelings against Kucinich, though I was kinda embarrassed for DK that night.

[revcarol]

39. Everyone had their closing remarks to be able to answer

any issues brought up after they spoke.But, instead of addressing the issues, some just mouthed platitudes about how pro-labor they were. That was THEIR choice.

Don't blame DK for putting them on the spot, when their own anti-labor stances already did this. He just pointed out the obvious.

[w4rma]

21. It's a third rail that noone wants to touch. (n/t)

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

42. Kucinich is the only one with enough guts to take this on

The Pentagon budget isn't just defence, a whole lot of it is just corporate welfare - even on the Democratic side, like the Boeing leases. Just more of our tax money getting redistributed to the fat cat CEOs.

Kucinich has the guts to say something about it, where's Howard Dean? Where's John Forbes-Kerry?

[blm]

51. Kerry wants to eliminate star wars and mini-nukes.

That's a big chunk of change.

[sangha]

43. I find your position naive

Campaigns are not about setting policy. They are about getting elected. If you want to know how a candidate will handle the budget, and it's associated problems, look at their record, and not their campaign promises

[DemocratSinceBirth]

46. Shouldn't Candidates Be Held To The Promises They Make

[G_j]

49. Question

have any of the candidates addressed the missing trillion ++ $$ ?

[RichM]

50. Kucinich brought it up in the forum broadcast from Philadelphia Monday.

I don't know if any of the others have; I haven't heard it from them, in any case.

[G_j]

54. I figured if anyone had mentioned it it would be DK.

The original post brings up a very disturbing point. The candidates considered "electable' refuse to address the black hole of the military industrial complex. Not a good omen for the future.

[Egnever]

56. Like it or not

We are at war in Iraq, We are at war in afghanistan, We arein a war on terror.

This is exactly why denis has absolutely no shot at becoming president.

Sure it would be great if we were at peace with the world but this puke we have in office has done everything in his power to ensure we are not. It will take years to repair all the damage done in the last four years. Till that damage is repaired we can not afford to gut our defense. Sure theres plenty of room to address waste and it should be addressed. But untill we brong the world back together under the UN banner United in peace our defense must remain strong. A new president will go a long way to helping us get back to that point. But it wont happen instantly it will take a lot of work.

Denis is off in dreamland here and if he thinks the american people will vote for him so that he can go in and gut defense spending at this point in time.....Well frankly hes looney toons!

I would love to see the jugernaut that is our pentagon budget reduced but now is not the time to get it done. Back up to before bush got into office and created all of the ill will towards us there is now and i would sing a different tune but right now this stance is dreaming!