how much is needed to defend the country and how much is waste? how many of those highly paid defense contractors actually necessary?
Here's a clue...there are few government employees who can deliver what those contractors provide. Many of the contractors are getting old e.g. 50 to 70 years old. The skills they possess haven't been passed to a new generation to carry them on. Mostly for lack of budget. When the old guys die, so does the technology they provide. Want to build another SR71? Too bad. The ability died with the guys who did it. Do you want enemy aircraft bombing you or would you prefer to have air superiority so that doesn't happen? It's a choice you have to make years before you need it. If you guess wrong, you die.