Tougher Budget, So Batten Hatches

Tomorrow’s speech by Defense Secretary Robert Gates at the Eisenhower Library will mark another milestone in his continuing effort to remake the U.S. military, this time with a renewed emphasis on how tight money is and how Congress must stop ruining the Pentagon’s best laid plans by inserting unwanted funding. One of the biggest burdens Congress places on the Pentagon budget is the pay raise they insist on giving troops every year, along with benefits increases. He’ll also press the four services and the rest of the Pentagon to tighten up their own management.

When Gates told the Navy that major changes are coming in a Monday speech before the Navy League, he signaled that tomorrow’s speech would turn the fires up under Congress.

“In this year’s budget submission, the Department has asked to end funding for an extra engine for the Joint Strike Fighter as well as to cease production of the C-17 cargo aircraft – two decisions supported by the services and reams of analysis. As we speak, a fight is on to keep the Congress from putting the extra engine and more C-17s back in the budget –- at an unnecessary potential cost to the taxpayers of billions of dollars over the next few years. The issues surrounding political will and the Defense budget are ones I will discuss in more detail at the Eisenhower Library on Saturday,” he said.

"He’ll (Gates) also press the four services and the rest of the Pentagon to tighten up their own management.""

That's right, our National defense has to tighten up and cannibalize airplane parts so we will have enough money left to feed every illegal alien that meanders across our FEDERALLY UNPROTECTED BORDERS while obama plays tiddlywinks with his former campaign managers.

I'm sure the military has a lot of WASTE, but it's usually NOT from the side of the military, it's from the side of the Congress and CINC.

I think any congress critter that takes money away from the military to spend on entitlements and illegal invaders should be impeached for National Theft and treason.

One of the biggest burdens Congress places on the Pentagon budget is the pay raise they insist on giving troops every year, along with benefits increases.

The biggest burden is buying crap from the lowest bidder. Then it breaks and needs to be bought again and agian and again.

Then there is just complete boneheadedness. The Marines stressed their equipment is rapidly getting heavier and heavier which bogs them down in the fight. The Corps decided to do away with the Interceptor flack jackets and get the MTVS. I still remember the Marine Corps Times propaganda piece they did saying 'while the new flak jacket was HEAVIER, it blah blah blah greatest thing in the world.' It was obvious the Marine Corps Times propaganda writer was NOT in the infantry.

Now, they found, AFTER SPENDING $100 MILLION ON THEM, that they're not so good and need to be replaced. One of the big issues is they cause back problems......

So, let me get this straight..... 1. troops identify problem to commanders

2. commanders ignore troops and compound the problem 3. commanders spend $100 million on crap and issue it to troops 4. the crap issued to the troops is incompatible with the mission 5. now money needs to be used to replace said crap 6. commanders blame the troop's PAYCHECKS for wasting money.

http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2009/jan/04/marine-corps-will-redesign-flak-jackets/

All the cool gear and gadgets in the world don't make a sh#t-a-bit-a difference if you can't carry it there. And until the military stops wasting this money on crap (and stops listening to gear queers that like stuff "cause it looks cool") they will always have this problem.

By the way number seven is my personal opinion .....7 Gates et al can go to hell.

should be atagline 0bama etal....

I am sorry, but I believe that Defense Secretary Robert Gates is a Globalist enabler, appointed by the globalist President Bush, who is residing over the destruction of the greatest military power of modern times!
Defense Secretary Robert Gates == TREASON IMHO.
Sorry, but that’s the way I see it. If he where a patriot, he would resign in protest, and mount opposition. He hasn’t, and that’s why Bush appointed him. He is cover for treasonous destruction of our national defenses, and exhaustion of our nation’s precious warrior’s blood and treasure!

Well, I think the problem that Gates is correctly identifying is the political games that are played when trying to make an efficient budget. There are some bases and projects that the Pentagon says they don't need, but then some Congressman may get perturbed when he finds out his district is losing jobs. There is a ton of waste in the Pentagon, and it does effect the ability of military brass to invest in wise projects. The weapons development programs of the military have been in shambles, there are so many instances where they have failed to replace an old line of weaponry or vehicle.

This is from the Weekly Standard:

In 1990, the U.S. Army had 780,000 soldiers on active duty and operated the “Big Five” weapons systems: the M1 Abrams tank, the M2 Bradley fighting vehicle, the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, the UH-60 Black Hawk troop transport helicopter, and the Patriot air defense missile. Twenty years later the Army is only 70 percent as big; it can’t meet its commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan without mobilizing about 100,000 National Guard and Army reservists. It operates the same Big Five, having failed five times to field a replacement ground combat vehicle, twice to field a new howitzer, and once to introduce a new armed scout chopper. Tens of billions invested in research have yielded very little procurement, except the Stryker wheeled vehicle and the Mine-Resistant, Ambush-Protected “MRAP” monster trucks that may not be very useful after Iraq.

As far as I can see he is the only Cabinet member that is talking about reigning in costs. Where the heck is the rest of the administration?????? (no need to answer) I work in the industry and those cuts will have a direct impact. But unless the rest of gubmint agencies reduce spending across the board, this will only be a drop in the bucket. We need a Chris Christie approach to ALL of Federal government. Gates is the only adult in the room in Obama’s Cabinet.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.