WSJ: THORNBERRY AND INHOFE ON DEFENSE BUDGET

Nov 30, 2018
Press Release
"Will we continue to rebuild our military, or will we squander our progress?"

WASHINGTON- Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-TX) and Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Chairmen respectively of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, warned the country today of the dangers of ill considered cuts to our military.  In an opinion column for the Wall Street Journal, the Chairmen note that the cuts being contemplated are more likely to diminish our war fighting capability and effectiveness than they are to eliminate inefficiency:

"The Pentagon would be forced to cut in areas where the most money can be saved quickly—troops, new equipment, training and maintenance—as it did under sequestration in 2013. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis will be asked to find $33 billion, for example, by planning for lower troop levels, diminishing the U.S. capability to stay ahead of China and Russia, sacrificing readiness—or all three."

 "...deliberate reform—not capricious last-minute cuts—is the way to achieve savings. In the past four years, we have implemented reforms to improve military health care, modernize military retirement and fix Pentagon acquisition. Those reforms and others have resulted in better services for the troops and saved taxpayers billions."
 
"But cutting defense will not close the deficit. The deficit would keep growing even if we eliminated the entire Pentagon budget. The president and Congress should not be duped into a false choice: rebuild our military or accept deep and growing deficits. This was a foolish argument when President Obama made it, and it hasn’t improved with age."