The "No Shit" Moment on the Hill

It's almost sad how we are continuously let down by the pronouncements of our learned political representatives on The Hill. More sad when they are Democrats, because we've come to expect the ludicrous, the stupidity of Republican comments. But here's Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), currently chairing the influential Senate Armed Services Committee, talking about the future defense budget.

Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the “success of any reductions in the Pentagon budget” would depend on savings from the significant troop reductions in Iraq this year and the pace of reducing the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan starting next July.

“More than any other thing, this is going to affect the budget,” Levin said at a breakfast with defense reporters.

If the pace of the troop reduction in Afghanistan is “significant” next July, Levin said, the Pentagon could have “major savings.”

You don't say? If we pull tens of thousands of US troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan, we reduce operations cost and can apply that to the budget? What a novel idea. Of course, it's instantly in peril because no Democratic politician will dare suggest in public fora that US national strategy should, in fact, consider the possibility that the current attempts to fight Afghanistan's insurgents without adequate support from the Afghani government isn't going to get any better over time. But anything to avoid the possibility of cutting modernization programs, eh, Senator Levin?

Let's not stop pushing a second jet engine for the Joint Strike Fighter onto the Pentagon when its leadership clearly stated it was not welcome. Let's continue to ignore the need for DOD acquisition reform when Dr. Ash Carter, the USD(AT&L) notes that 30-40% of all DOD contracts are overhead costs. Let's continue to ignore all the GAO reports that document the spiraling costs of major defense acquisition programs, as they double in cost and continue to be delayed. Let's all cross our fingers and hope that GEN Petraeus pulls off a miracle and is able to significantly beat down the Taliban and allow for some initial drops in manpower in Afghanistan. But hope isn't a strategy, is it, Senator?

Comments

[Ray]

This Post echoed a thought of consequences that I've had a lot over these past years: what happens for troops etc when they are brought home? Certainly, with the UK's present unemployment and financial contraints (probably paying for this war and limited Defense proposals)we'd be in some trouble for finding jobs. Extrapolate and as an outsider I could see similar things for the US.

[NVH]

Ray, See J's next post, us right winging leaners hate homeless vets, but we probably made them homeless in the first place...