Robert Gates Says Urgent Need For Big Cuts At Defense Department

[laughingliberal]

ABILENE, Kan. — Warring against waste, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Saturday he is ordering a top-to-bottom paring of the military bureaucracy in search of at least $10 billion in annual savings needed to prevent an erosion of U.S. combat power.

He took aim at what he called a bloated bureaucracy, wasteful business practices and too many generals and admirals, and outlined an ambitious plan for reform that's almost certain to stir opposition in the corridors of Congress and Pentagon.

"The Defense Department must take a hard look at every aspect of how it is organized, staffed and operated – indeed, every aspect of how it does business," he said in a speech at the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in the former commander in chief's home town. Gates, also a Kansas native, addressed a crowd of about 300 from the steps of the library at a ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of Nazi Germany's surrender in World War II.

The library was a fitting setting for Gates to caution against unrestrained military spending. In his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office in January 1961, President Dwight D. Eisenhower famously warned of the "grave implications" of having built during that war an enormous military establishment and a huge arms industry that could wield undue influence in American society. <snip>

More at link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/08/robert-gates-says-urgent-_n_568980.html

If Gates is serious about this and the administration gets behind it, it is a very good step in the right direction. If the Pentagon gets their way and the cuts are all on the backs of the troops, it's a bad move.

Interesting that just as Gates is starting this conversation, the Pentagon starts whining about the pay for the troops being too high and the cost of their benefits.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/07/AR2010050703054.html?hpid=topnews

[Lasher]

1. These cuts would not equate to any reduction in overall defense spending.

And that is what's needed. We need to cut our defense spending at least in half.

[ima_sinnic]

2. $10 billion is like a bucketful out of the ocean

it's a nice gesture designed to placate the masses and make it appear that "something is being done" but does nothing to address the real problem of being bloated to the gills with unnecessary WMDs and other paraphenalia that deal death and destruction, for the sake of keeping the gears of the MIC smoothly turning.

without a humungous defense budget, our main business of empire, mayhem, death and destruction would collapse.

[Birthmark]

4. Right? I literally LOL'd when I read that figure.

A cut of less than 1.5% is hardly the cut I'm looking for. Make it 40% or 50% and I'll be impressed.

[rurallib]

5. "warring against Waste" and 'cutting $10B in defense'

was about as odd of a pairing as I have seen.
About like me cutting $100 out of my annual budget.
Had lunch with a local congressional staffer Friday. We were discussing the donut hole in the medicare drug bill.
She said it was being phased in because congress had not figured out how to pay for it.
I laughed out loud. I said "First get out of Iraq and Afghanistan. Then close 200military bases in 100 countries around the world. And then let's cut that military budget at least in half."
She looked at me and laughed and said 'I agree, but I doubt we can get congress to go along.'

[BeFree]

3. Gates is leaving?

He could only say this with a resignation. He just made enemies of hundreds of the higher ranked.

[ipaint]

6. PR groundwork for entitlement cuts. nt

[Mr Rabble]

8. Yup

[annabanana]

7. Gates's history is too long and spotted for me not to be looking

for the devils in the details....