Federal Budget: Should the Military Budget and Defense Spending be Cut?

A	Yes. In an attempt to balance the Federal Budget, Military Spending should be cut.

B	No. We should never make cuts to the Defense Budget.

C	Maybe. After making cuts to other programs, such as entitlements, we can consider making cuts in Military Spending if it is required to help balance the Federal Budget Deficit.

US Military Spending is estimated to reach $966 billion in 2011, this is nearly 3x's the 2001 Military budget of $377 billion. The current political climate in Washington D.C. seems to be focused on cutting the US Federal Budget, however, nobody seems to be suggesting any cuts to the Military Budget. In Can We Cut "Defense" Spending?, Thomas Eddlem argues for cutting defense spending because "U.S. “defense” spending today has all of the hallmarks of every other out-of-control big-government program. For example, nobody can say for sure precisely how much the United States spends on defense, and nobody can say for sure how many bases the U.S. government has abroad."

Bill Kristol, AEI's, Arthur Brooks, and The Heritage Foundation's, Ed Feulner, disagree with cutting the military budget. In the article 'Peace Doesn't Keep Itself' for The Weekly Standard, the three argue:

We should be vigilant against waste in every corner of the budget. But anyone seeking to restore our fiscal health should look at entitlements first, not across-the-board cuts aimed at our men and women in uniform.

Furthermore, military spending is not a net drain on our economy. It is unrealistic to imagine a return to long-term prosperity if we face instability around the globe because of a hollowed-out U.S. military lacking the size and strength to defend American interests around the world.

Global prosperity requires commerce and trade, and this requires peace. But the peace does not keep itself. The Global Trends 2025 report, which reflects the consensus of the U.S. intelligence community, anticipates the rise of new powers—some hostile—and projects a demand for continued American military power. Meanwhile we face many nonstate threats such as terrorism, and piracy in sea lanes around the world. Strength, not weakness, brings the true peace dividend in a global economy.

Graph of Military Spending FY 2000 to FY 2020