Tuesday, February 9, 2016

The White House Does An About-Face On Defense Spending


Politico: Republicans gloat over Obama’s about-face on defense spending

The administration will push for some of the same weapons it had earlier dismissed as not needed.

NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Just three months ago, President Barack Obama blasted lawmakers for pumping billions of dollars into weapons the Pentagon hadn’t requested.

Now his administration is touting some of those same weapons as crucial for combating the Islamic State and for deterring a rising China and a resurgent Russia.

The turnabout is causing a major credibility problem for the Defense Department ahead of Tuesday’s release of the president's new budget proposal, key lawmakers told POLITICO. Republican defense hawks spent the last year opposing the department’s efforts to retire the aging A-10 Warthog attack jet and stop buying Tomahawk missiles and F-18 Super Hornet fighters — the very weapons getting praise now from Defense Secretary Ash Carter.

Read more ....

Update: The Great Reversal: Obama's Military Buildup (Dov S. Zakheim, National Interest).

WNU Editor: I guess facts on the ground are telling the Obama administration (and the Pentagon) that they need to shift course and direction.

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