Time to Bring Common Sense to Defense Budgeting

By Barbara Lee  |  The Hill  |  Link to article
February 25, 2009

For many years, many of us here in Congress have been pushing for an honest and critical look at our defense budget so we can make the adjustments necessary to reflect our true national security interests. The time has come for the entire Congress to do this and Congressman Barney Frank’s proposal to reduce military spending provides this opportunity.

Eighteen years since the collapse of the Soviet Union the Pentagon continues to waste tens of billions of dollars buying outdated, Cold War-era weaponry for a national security threat that no longer exists.

Our spending on security should address the current threats we face.  By cutting these unnecessary Defense programs we can make much needed investments in ensuring health care for all of our children, improving our public schools, and ending our dependence upon foreign oil, without diminishing our ability to protect our nation.

In his address last night, President Obama mentioned his support for reforming the defense budget so that we’re not paying for Cold War-era weapons systems we don’t use and during these tough economic times this it makes good sense.