Pentagon Cuts Are Long Overdue
WASHINGTON, D.C. — — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth today circulated a memo ordering senior Pentagon leaders to develop a plan to cut 8% annually from a portion of the Department of Defense’s budget over the next five years, according to reporting by the Washington Post. In response, Public Citizen Co-President Robert Weissman issued the following statement:
“There is plenty of opportunity—and a desperate need for—deep cuts in Pentagon spending, if that is in fact what Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is proposing. However, it seems that this announcement may amount to a money-moving exercise within the agency itself rather than an overall Pentagon topline reduction.
“The Pentagon budget is fast approaching $1 trillion, with a fiscal year 2025 budget of a mind-blowing $895 billion—and Republicans in Congress looking to shower an additional $75 billion or more a year on the Pentagon through the reconciliation process.
“This obscene level of spending—which does not include military aid to Ukraine—is far more reflective of the political influence and power of the military-industrial complex than any legitimate national defense interest. In fact, the Pentagon has never once passed an audit and the United States spends more on defense than the next nine largest military spenders combined.
“Eliminating waste, ending investments in failed weapons systems, and cracking down on contractor ripoffs could easily save $100 billion annually. Even greater savings could be achieved by placing greater emphasis on diplomacy over weaponry, or by recognizing domestic and humanitarian spending priorities that are crowded out by Pentagon spending.
“As reported in the Washington Post, the Hegseth proposal wrongly exempts 17 categories from cuts, including areas that are ripe for savings and which should themselves be curtailed in the name of national security, like the nation’s nuclear arsenal, missile defense and drones. These protected categories give clues to the administration’s priorities that may be disguised in partial reports about the Hegseth memo: increased militarization and ever-increasing corporate profits.
“It’s too soon to know exactly what the Hegseth proposal entails, or if it would deliver actual cuts, and so not possible to issue even a preliminary assessment. But this much remains clear: It’s time to cut—not increase—the Pentagon budget, and to devote the savings to human needs.”
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