American Needs Over Pentagon Greed
Public Citizen, 14 Other Groups Demand Cuts to Bloated Pentagon Budget to Fund Domestic Programs
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee’s (D-Calif.) resolution to cut the overfunded military budget and invest those funds in domestic and human needs such as pandemic response, affordable education, green jobs and infrastructure, is urgently needed, Public Citizen and 14 other groups said today.
The exorbitant $738 billion annual military budget – more than 53% of the nation’s discretionary budget – doesn’t reflect any reasonable assessment of national security threats, commonsense priority setting, acknowledgment of the extraordinary waste in the Pentagon budget. The government is wasting hundreds of billions of dollars of taxpayer money, fueling endless war and diverting money from other vital needs. Pentagon spending is making America weaker as domestic and human needs are left severally underfunded.
“The U.S. soars above other nations in bloated military spending and openly exports its militarism at home and abroad. This blind devotion to war-making and propping up defense contractors must end,” said Robert Weissman, President, Public Citizen. “Wasteful funding at the Pentagon should be immediately channeled to meet the urgent needs of our time, including healthcare for every American, investment in public health preparedness, and swift and effective action to prevent climate annihilation. Citizens deserve to see their taxpayer dollars invested in them rather than funneled down a military-industrial complex black hole.”
Read quotes from other organizations here.