LOOK, IT’S AN ELECTION YEAR, SO….
(….the best vote getting ploy is to call for cutting costs with….Defense)

The President’s recent announcement calling for some $500 billion in defense spending cuts over the next ten years, smacks of maneuvering for political advantage in next November’s elections, rather than being seriously considered ways and means to actually reduce spending. It’s just political posturing by an Administration sensing it’s in trouble with tax-paying voters; so, it’s prescribing a bit of –symptomatic medicine – to keep them quiet, if not happy, instead of coming up with a real cure for deficit spending.

Of course, like any other government department, not to mention Congress, DOD could do with a bit of economizing in the way it applies those tax dollars that have been picked from our pockets. Waste, mismanagement, and even fraud, are not unique to DOD (nor, again, should we overlook Congress on that score). And although it is in the good hands of Secretary Panetta, one of the few of our top officials with a credible record for rational budgeting and effective fiscal management, even he will be hard pressed to come up with workable ways to cope with his latest White House pronouncement.

Among other things, once Congress gets involved with the process as part of its constitutional duty, then all bets will be off because all-out political warfare is bound to ensue as everyone begins squabbling over whether our Defense costs are too high….or not enough….or about what sort of defense establishment we should have in the first place. All of which will obliterate any rationality on the issue, with one of the biggest fights involved being about how much of our GDP should be allocated for it, currently at less than 5% of our GDP. Whereas our most likely rival, China, reportedly only spends some 1.5% of its GDP. Compared to it, our defense spending is gold-plated.

Frankly, measuring defense spending against GDP is a false metric to go by. A less distorted and more accurate perspective for it would be to show what percentage it takes from the Executive Branch’s share of the total Federal Budget in any given fiscal year. In fact, if we applied that proportionate approach to all these branches of government, we might then have a much clearer picture of how and where our tax dollars are being applied….and for how much. That would be a much more rational basis for deciding how to make or shift such allocations. Right now, we tax payers haven’t a clue.

As for Defense, the problem with this kind of arbitrary budgeteering for it is that it’s the equivalent of putting the cart before….the horse. Here’s why:

Defense is a very complex matrix composed of many factors of consideration. It requires intelligent thinking about it on the basis of – precession – . That is, certain things have to be decided before others decisions can be made. It’s particularly critical with the issue of –Defense- because it’s not a stand-alone matter. Defense is a component of foreign policy, and foreign policy derives from defining what our real vital national interests are, not just for the present, but for the future besides. And to resolve these considerations we also have to discern not only what may be on the distant horizon, but what may be coming at us from over that horizon.  In short, before we can shift our military capabilities and posture we need to have a clear, consistent, and strategic perspective about where our national interests truly are, because our military capabilities are a vital function of supporting or protecting them. Furthermore, complicating it all is the very long lead time involved with developing and deploying the weapons systems necessary for doing so, plus, being able to forecast and know what our economic and industrial capacities are going to be at any point along the way. Simply put, creating and maintaining an effective defense establishment and posture depends on how well we’re able o integrate all these factors while planning for both our near term “tactical” needs, and long term “strategic” ones.

Thus, making arbitrary spending cut pronouncements about it serves no useful purpose other than as a political ploy to stampede an electorate to the low-budget side of the street.

Well, come November, let’s hope we taxpayers will have the smarts not to be conned by such ploys, and look at any candidate for the presidency (Democrat or Republican) with a very jaundiced eye, and only consider those who display any comprehension of the complexities involved with this subject.

Single issue or one-note Charlies about the subject….should be ignored.

CENTURION