Share This Page Slashdot Del.icio.us Google Digg Reddit Newsvine Furl Yahoo Facebook

Washington, D.C., Jun 16, 2009 -

As the House Armed Services Committee moves today to pass its annual defense policy bill, one of the amendments likely to shape the context of today’s debate will be offered by Congressman J. Randy Forbes (VA-04) and Congressman Todd Akin (MO-02) to ensure that Department of Defense decision-making is being driven by an assessment of security needs rather than budget constraints.

The amendment would require that the sitting President issue a National Security Strategy (NSS) prior to beginning a quadrennial defense review (QDR).  Currently, development of a QDR may begin before the establishment of an overall government security strategy despite congressional intention that a QDR report is to be “a subordinate part of a broader national strategic framework.” According to law, a QDR’s purpose is to “delineate a national defense strategy consistent with the most recent national security strategy.”

“At the heart of today’s most critical debates is the question of what is driving Administration’s defense decision-making,” Forbes said.  “Unprecedented Pentagon secrecy is compounding the growing concern on this committee that the Administration is content to create a budget-driven strategy rather than a strategy-driven budget.”

The Akin-Forbes amendment establishes that a QDR is a strategy-driven process and budget constraints should not limit the outcome and that a QDR does not exempt the DOD from submitting annual budget documentation required by law.

Forbes also intends to introduce an amendment designed to increase transparency at the Department of Defense.  Forbes’ amendment states that any member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff may submit advice or opinion to the Congress in addition to, or in disagreement with, the advice presented by the Chairman or the Secretary of Defense.  The amendment is aimed at reducing the Administration's recent trend towards muting the independent advice from service leaders to Members of Congress especially in regards to the FY2010 budget process and the military services’ unfunded requirements, which are needs identified by the services that were not included in the President's annual budget.  A similar process for the military service chiefs to provide dissenting advice already exists for the President, National Security Council, and Homeland Security Council, and this legislation would replicate that process for Congress.

“The first article of the US Constitution charges Congress with responsibility to "raise and support armies… and to provide and maintain a navy.” Members of this Committee take that charge seriously,” Forbes said. “We cannot fulfill our duty without access to information about what risks we are assuming when approve this defense budget.”