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April 02, 2009
Obama Milks Military to Offset Domestic Spending
Obama Milks Military to Offset Domestic Spending
Obama's strategy for obtaining deep cuts in Pentagon weapons buying has emerged: squeeze the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps to pick up more war costs in Iraq and Afghanistan, forcing them to forego new planes, ships and vehicles.
Obama's 2010 budget outline now being debated in Congress provides $130 billion to fund the two wars. But that is $11 billion less than this year at a time when 17,000 new troops are moving to Afghanistan and when savings from a phased withdrawal from Iraq are unclear.
Added to this scenario is the fact that 2010 will be the last year of a separate war budget, or supplemental, as it is known. So the four branches will have to absorb even more war costs in the so-called "out years."
An analysis by Republicans on the House Armed Services Committee reveals the four military branches will be forced to make up a $141 billion shortfall over two years. The White House needs to milk the military to help offset soaring domestic spending that will create trillion-dollar annual deficits.
The crunch can only have one result: deep cuts in programs. It is why Defense Secretary Robert Gates is now engaged in intense negotiations with the top brass on the 2010 budget before he unveils the carnage.
"They are really setting the stage to drop the hammer in 2011 and 2012," said James Jay Carafano, a military analyst at the Heritage Foundation. "And at the same time what they're trying to do is basically come up with the rhetoric to just disguise this as just good government."
The military will eventually suffer combat readiness problems as it did under Democratic presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, who both inflicted deep wounds in defense spending.
Carafano told HUMAN EVENTS that as the bills for Afghanistan mount, the Obama plan is to shift the cost to the basic defense budget, and not go to Congress for supplemental funds.
"This will accelerate the process of undercutting military readiness," he said. "It's kind of insidious rot. If we have eight years of this, by the time the next administration comes up, the military will just be on its back. Or there will be a new war in the meantime, and you'll see it in casualties and other problems."
Internal Senate Republican documents obtained by HUMAN EVENTS projects Obama will shortchange defense by $1.3 trillion over 10 years because it will fall well below the 4 percent of gross domestic product coveted by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Obama's 2010 base defense budget -- that is the spending level absent programs in other departments -- is $534 billion. That is a 4% increase over 2009, but includes war spending not in previous budgets. It is $26 billion below 4% of GDP, according to the Senate analysis.
Gates' task is so sensitive he has placed a gag order on virtually every senior person inside the Pentagon. Leak any details and you risk the wrath of Gates, who already has fired his Joint Chiefs chairman (Peter Pace) and his Air Force chief (T. Michael Moseley).
The budget shrinking comes at a particularly bad time. The services need to replace equipment worn out by the war on terror. Gag order or not, to get the kind of reductions Gates or Obama seek, the services will have to cough up cherished projects such as the Air Force's F-22 Raptor, the Army's battlefield Future Combat System and the Navy's destroyers and frigates.
A defense official told HUMAN EVENTS that Gates is looking at reducing the Navy's carrier battle groups from 11 to 10, meaning he could then reduce production of aircraft carriers and other combat ships. The Air Force wants 243 F-22s, but likely will get something in the range of 187 to 203. Gates' staff is also targeting the Air Force's new combat search and rescue helicopter and may decide to cancel the CSAR-X. And, in another blow to the Air Force, Gates may further delay buying a new aerial refueling jet.
Gates' budget exercise is so all-consuming he cancelled a planned NATO trip. His spokesman will not say when all this pending decision-making will result in a 2010 budget to Capitol Hill.
"There is a lot here, and it wouldn't surprise me if it took some additional time," said Geoff Morrell.
The projected cuts are already having an effect on U.S. military posture. Obama plans deep reductions in missile defense spending. Her may cancel George W. Bush's plan to put ground-launchers in Eastern Europe to thwart an attack by Iran.
Gates told Fox News Sunday the Pentagon will not try to shoot down a North Korean missile that the communist regime says will put a communications satellite in space. Military analysts say the launch is a smoke screen for developing a long-range missile that could hit its neighbors or the U.S.
How can you cut missile defense if the world sees how well it works against renegade North Korea?
Wild Thing's comment........
If he can demolish our military, his beloved Muslin terrorists will win. Someday, Americans are going to look back on this time and say, “what the hell were these people thinking?” But, by then, it will either be too late for the Republic, or massive deaths from the new civil war within and the attacks from the communist on the outside. We have plenty of communist running loose in this country now.
We fought the communist for over 60 years. Now, we have voted them in. Americans who lived and died for freedom from communism, must be sitting in Heaven and wondering what the hell is wrong with those stupid people down there. The Founding Fathers have simply shaken their heads and acknowledged that America has lost its mind.
If this nation’s military is crippled, then, in Obama's view, it can do no harm overseas. That it may be incapable of defending the nation is of no consequence.
Posted by Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 05:55 AM
Comments
There was an e-mail read on the air yesterday, and I can't quote it exactly but here goes.
"America's dominance as a world economic power is not being tested by China or Russia but rather by Obama and his administration."
This writer hit the nail on the head. He has done more damage to our Republic in 2 1/2 months than has been done in 2 1/2 centuries. Compared to Obama as a f*&k%$G joke even Carter looks like a piker.
Bob A.
Posted by: Bob A at April 2, 2009 06:52 AM
This is truly a sad and scary time for being an American. Those who voted him in should be ashamed of themselves. He's only kept one promise-to change what didn't need changing. Even PM Brown did a sarcastic, off the cuff remark about how he's changed the world and Obamanation didn't even catch it. We are in deep doo-doo and it breaks my heart. Everything I worked so hard for, everything my parents and ancestors worked so hard for is gone. Shameful, simply shameful. All over some damn entitlement payments.
Posted by: Lynn at April 2, 2009 08:14 AM
They have fired two of the best Generals we had. Now we are looking at an auatere budget. Especially for the smaller branches. Meaning: "If the the Army aint shitcanned it, the Marine Corps aint got it."
In 1963 when I got to the 2nd Marine Division, we were still using World War 2, radios, the Division had just been issued the M-14 a couple of years behind the Army, and we still had the M1918A1 machine gun, which created a logistics nightmare of having to have on hand two different types of ammunition, in great quantity. it took another 6 months before we got the new M-60.
It was bullshit then as it is bullshit now. This kind of budget gets young troops killed noy got lack of training but lack of the proper equipment.
Posted by: Mark at April 2, 2009 09:16 AM
Of course Obama is going to gut the military to pay for his spending programs. He's surrounded himself with Clinton people and that's what Clinton did.
http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/individualProfile.asp?indid=644
http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2007/3/29/83831.shtml
Posted by: BobF at April 2, 2009 11:09 AM
Wild Thing. Obama sure is on the road to demolish our military. However, for the muslims to win, Obama has to demolish our other force, the armed populace. Us.
Obama is on a frantic pace to bring America down to his socialist ideals. I don't know how soon he is going to start his civilian disarmament program. His goal is to make all of America like Chicago. Lots of extreme gun laws and lots of crime. The sooner the better to Teh One.
The Chicago plan is to have an unarmed citizenry beset by an armed thuggary. The citizens are too busy trying to survive while the political class loots the banks. A stripped down military will serve primarily as a palace guard police force for the political rulers.
Hey, just like Zimbabwe.
Posted by: TomR at April 2, 2009 12:17 PM
I am afraid that it is worse than you think. Take out the operational costs and pay for personnel and the whole military runs on about $60 billion dollars per year. Vendors have been abandoning the military products market since Bush 41, driving up costs as militiary equipment becomes an ever smaller custom products market.
Obama's projection of transfering $40 billion dollars a year to domestic spending means cutting the pay of already underpaid personnel who go into harms way or leaving the men charging machine guns with their bare hands as Americans had to at the begining of WWII. Our MSM is not going to point out that Patton went into North Africa with parts in some tanks that he bought from Sears with his own money.
Posted by: Avitar at April 2, 2009 01:19 PM
Bob A., that is so godo and so true too. Thank
you for sharing about that letter.
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:12 PM
Lynn, well said and I know just how you
feel.
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:15 PM
I have long accepted the thought process of this new white house and many americans in thinking that we're not neccesary. But I ask them what will they do look to obama for protection WHEN their city gets blown up? Or will they simply just blame the U.S. Military as they usually have.
You know were just a bunch of imperialist warmongers after all who've been bombing our poor enemies for ages. Most media, celebrities, and politicians say it so it must be true right?
Posted by: JohnE PFC U.S. Army at April 2, 2009 07:23 PM
Mark, thank you for sharing about your experience
about this.
This makes me cry, what he is doing to our
country and to our military. I guess the anger
builds up and overdflows into tears. grrrrrr
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:26 PM
BobF., thank you for the links.
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:34 PM
Tom, thank you, your right, this really upsets me.
If there are two things that really make it hard to
handle it is anything bad done to our military or to
our Veterans. Those two things are my top priority
so all this cut backs etc. well I can't even put here
some of the things I wish for Obama.
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:42 PM
Avitar, Wow I never knew that about Patton.
Thank you for the rest of the information
as well.
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:47 PM
JohnE PFC U.S. Army, NO it is not true,
but those jerks assholes few in number
have a loud voice because of the media.
JohnE, you are one of America's finest
and every day I thank God for you and
for your serving our country.
To add to that to be friends is an
honor and a blessing to me.
These people like Obama and all the rest
of his ilk that think like he does will
have a special horrible place in hell...
I pray for that too.
Posted by: Wild Thing at April 2, 2009 07:50 PM
