Senior Fellow John Isaacs wrote an op-ed in Inkstick analyzing the latest necessary calls for reduced Pentagon spending — this time, from Republicans.
“Sometimes, a surprise is not a surprise. In recent years, the US defense budget has skyrocketed. Last year, for example, Congress added $44.6 billion to the Pentagon budget compared to an already sky-high Biden administration request. As a result, the funds appropriated to the Department of Defense last year increased by a colossal $76 billion from the previous year. In fact, the US defense budget is well above the peak of the Vietnam War after adjusting for inflation.
The push to shovel more money into the Pentagon has been led primarily by Republicans, such as House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) but supported by most Republicans and many Democrats as well. Rogers crowed last year about the annual defense authorization bill as a “bipartisan and bicameral agreement that makes the investments our military needs to maintain overmatch with China.” Certainly, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine added gasoline to the defense fire.
Recently, there has been a reaction against the drive to add more money for defense. The true surprise: much of the change of heart is coming not from Democratic doves but from Republican hawks. Given recent trends, the reversal may seem abrupt, but should not be considered shocking when there have been warnings about the growth of defense spending for years.” Read more
