The Joint Strike Fighter program, which rolled out a jet in 2006, is said to be a target for cuts. Mike Fuentes/Bloomberg New (Photo taken from the New York Times)Anticipating Cuts in Military Spending, Budget Planners Sharpen Their Pencils -- New York Times
WASHINGTON — After years of unfettered growth in military budgets, Defense Department planners, top commanders and weapons manufacturers now say they are almost certain that the financial meltdown will have a serious impact on future Pentagon spending.
Across the military services, deep apprehension has led to closed-door meetings and detailed calculations in anticipation of potential cuts. Civilian and military budget planners concede that they are already analyzing worst-case contingency spending plans that would freeze or slash their overall budgets.
The obvious targets for savings would be expensive new arms programs, which have racked up cost overruns of at least $300 billion for the top 75 weapons systems, according to the Government Accountability Office. Congressional budget experts say likely targets for reductions are the Army’s plans for fielding advanced combat systems, the Air Force’s Joint Strike Fighter, the Navy’s new destroyer and the ground-based missile defense system.
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My Comment: With a trillion dollar deficit around the corner, it should be no surprise that politicians are looking for places to cut.