Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today defended American service members after Secretary of Defense Robert Gates hinted to an audience at Duke University that he may consider cutting military pay. 

“… Given the enormous fiscal pressures facing the country,’ the nation must devise ‘an equitable and sustainable system of military pay and benefits that reflects the realities of this century,” said Secretary Gates according to the Associated Press. 

“The Associated Press reports that the Department of Defense (DoD) may cut military pay and benefits.  It is absolutely unacceptable.  The American people are fully supportive of our servicemen and women and expect them to be well-paid.   They should not have to bear the brunt of necessary cuts in spending at the Pentagon.” 

 “It has been well established that the Pentagon budget is out of control and that Pentagon management of taxpayer resources is woefully inadequate. The Pentagon lost track of over $8.7 billion of reconstruction funds in Iraq. Millions of U.S. tax dollars have been misplaced or stolen in Iraq, right under the nose of top DoD commanders.

“The very last people who should be forced to sacrifice their compensation are the men and women who serve. The families of many servicemen and women depend on their paychecks to survive,” said Kucinich. “How can you ask people to put their lives on the line and at the same time tell them you may cut their pay? If anything, they deserve a raise.”

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