Kinda sad that the Pentagon cannot supply the basics on an $810 billion budget (21% of the Fed budget). The military budget was up to $880 billion in 2011 under Obama (up from $730 billion the last year of the G.W. Bush admin.)...then was brought down to $810 billion in 2017...(an 8% reduction). An 8% reduction in “overseas escapades” (Europe/Germany/Japan, etc.) doesn’t seem like too awfully much to ask to help balance the budget.
https://www.usgovernmentspending.com/spending_chart_2006_2023USr_19s1li111mcn_30f
If we get in a shooting war with China or Russia or their proxies, we’re going to wish we still had our British, German and Japanese bases.
Also, the reason we have Japanese bases is because we decided we didn’t want them fully remilitarizing in their own defense. The rest of Asia decided they weren’t interested in that either, considering that Japan’s entire history consists of invasions of the mainland with interludes of re-arming and rebuilding. They are permitted a small self defense force and the rest of their military protection requirements are supplied, by treaty, by the US.
Do you really want to do the Pacific Theater of WW2 again in a few decades this time with Japan possessing nuclear weapons? That seems like a *really* bad idea to me.
You also need to remember that the US military was directed to spend money on “outreach,” “diversity,” “gender integration” and making male Marines march around in high heels. They spent a LOT of money on that under Obama - thanks not only to his policies but due to the Sequester.