How Obama Will Outspend Reagan on Defense: The Pentagon Spigot is Wide Open

[Karmadillo]

This is actually a good thing, because if we didn't spend the money on the Pentagon, some idiot bleeding heart would argue we needed to spend it on schools or health care or stupid stuff like that.

http://www.counterpunch.org/wheeler06172009.html

On Jan. 27, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates warned Congress, "The spigot of defense funding opened by 9/11 is closing." Right after Gates' defense budget was released on May 7, the Pentagon's comptroller, Robert Hale, confirmed to the press: "The spigot is starting to close." A closing spigot implies less money, but the new 2010 defense budget shows quite clearly that the spigot is not closing; it's stuck - full on. Not counting the costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Pentagon's annual appropriations for 2009 were $514 billion. For 2010, Gates is requesting $534 billion. The flow is to increase by $20 billion.

Comptroller Hale also told the press, "We don't have a plan be yond 2010." He said there would not be one until after the Defense Department completes its review of strategy, programs and policy - the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR).

Actually, there is a plan for the out-years "beyond 2010." It's in the budget that President Barack Obama approved and sent to Congress that same May 7. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) materials on the budget show a flood of numbers for DoD's outyears. They are all available to the public in Table 26-1 of OMB's 415 page tome for the 2010 budget, "Analytical Perspectives." It projects DoD spending all the way out to 2019.

Not counting money projected for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the presidentially approved budget plan would continue increasing the Pentagon's budget: by another $8.1 billion in 2011 (up 1.5 percent), another $9 billion in 2012 (up 1.6 percent), and $10.4 billion in 2013 (up1.8 percent), and so on all the way out to 2019.

If we add in the costs for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Pentagon budget for the current fiscal year - 2009 - exceeds any year since the end of World War II, including the spending peaks for the Korean and Vietnam wars.

President Obama's plan is to increase that lead.

Obama also will outspend Ronald Reagan on defense.

more...

[Dawgs]

1. Okay, so now the Iraq war is Obama's fault?

WTF!!

[Winterblues]

5. The continuation of it certainly is...

"Beginning on Day One"....."One Brigade a Month"....

[SammyWinstonJack]

2. Nice 'change', eh?

x(

[zipplewrath]

3. This is a tad unfair

You can't compare Ronnies spending with these first year proposals at all. First of all the Constitution doesn't even allow budgeting on military expenses beyond 2 years. Second, the increases are less than 2% and those barely qualify as "sustaining". 3rd we have worn out, and continue to wear out, equipment expected to have lasted decades. It will either have to be replaced, or eliminated. Either one would be considered a "cut" by anyone in the military or budgeting process. Finally, the basis for Gates' comment was because the supplementary funding process was being kept "off the books" for the Bush years and they found ways to insert acquistion money into that process. That is what is coming to an end so all of it will have to be done under the existing funding mechanisms, and those are coming to a close.

What ISN'T coming to a close is the amount of money we spend on our defense infrastructure. Unfortunately, that's one of those "Only Nixon can go to China" things. A democrat has a hard time shrinking the size of the defense budget in any meaningful way. The Blue Dogs won't support him and the GOP will hang him out to dry.

[HamdenRice]

4. Remind me. I don't know nuffin bout history. Was there 2 wars goin' on when Reagan took office?

No?

Oh, that explains it.

Kind of like how in Harry Truman's first five months of office, Defense Spending reached was at an all time high.

Yet strangely, he did not submit the declaration of war in December 1941.

[GoesTo11]

6. Its beginning to look like Obama's more republican than Reagan

Beginning?

[Butch350]

7. Denfense Contracts puts a lot of people to work

and makes the contractors wealthy. Conflicts are very profitable, for the denfense industry -- and that ain't
gonna change any time soon. No matter who is president.

[MisterP]

8. pulls out paper labled "Only been N months" from Zoltar machine.

let's try again
"He's better than McCain"
drat
"It's not our place to question him"
agh!
"Drones are good for Afghan feminists"
eh?
"Iran 2009 is exactly like France 1789"
I think Zoltar's broke
"Criticism will make the GOP win in 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010"
there we go!

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

9. New Boss, meet the REAL bosses.