Defense and the Global War on Terror

“Providing for the common defense” is the federal government’s most important responsibility as prescribed by the Constitution. It is the cornerstone of our freedom upon which all other liberties and guarantees rely. Our nation’s ability to protect its people must remain the foremost priority for the president and Congress.

A strong national defense not only allows the U.S. to react to acts of war quickly and effectively, but it also serves as a deterrent toward those attacks from hostile nations or groups. This requires providing the Department of Defense (DOD) with the necessary resources to do so. That said, to responsibly address our nation’s record debt, DOD’s budget must be scrutinized and cut where possible, just as with all other federal agencies.

In July of 2012, the House passed the Fiscal Year 2013 DOD Appropriations Act, H.R. 5856. This legislation provides our military with the funding needed to support our active-duty troops and the Global War on Terror, as well as non-emergency expenditures for our reserve troops.

Due to the failure of the Super Committee to identify $1.5 trillion in spending reductions by the end of 2011, the government is scheduled to incur $1.2 trillion in automatic, across-the-board spending cuts --also referred to as sequestration-- over the next 10 years As a result, the Pentagon faces devastating spending reductions over the next decade.

Such drastic cuts would leave the United States in its weakest military position in decades: shrinking our navy to its smallest size since before World War II, diminishing our ground forces to their smallest size since before World War I, and severely inhibiting necessary modernizations and acquisitions of equipment. 

These combined budget cuts will also devastate for our feeble economy. Georgia, alone, is estimated to lose more than 54,000 jobs and it is estimated that more than one million jobs could be lost nationally. This will result in higher unemployment and a reduction in U.S. GDP growth. 

Already budget cuts have terminated production of the F-22 fighter jet, a critical component of America’s industrial base and a source of economic strength. F-22 production created nearly 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in 44 states and represented more than 12 billion in annual economic activity. Furthermore, the F-22 protects our citizens and our soldiers and deters our enemies.

As a former member of the Armed Services Committee, I believe it is imperative that we cut wasteful and duplicative spending from the Pentagon budget. However, I will work to enact sensible, structured spending cuts that do not jeopardize the safety of our men and women in uniform.