The ill effects of defense cuts

Max Boot from the Washington Post warned about the dangers of cuts to the U.S. defense budget on Friday, citing historical examples.

Although the past decade or so has seen increases in military spending, the Pentagon is being pressured to cut spending from both political and economic fronts. In addition to the burdensome deficit, analysts think support for Pentagon spending will diminish as Barack Obama withdraws more and more troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The New York Times quoted Erskine B. Bowles, a former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton and a co-chairman of the deficit commission, saying, “We’re going to have to take a hard look at defense if we are going to be serious about deficit reduction.” Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee Daniel Inouye said, “I’m pretty certain cuts are coming—in defense and the whole budget.” Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted to cut $8 billion from the Pentagon’s request for an $18 billion budget increase.

Boot noted that America has historically diminished its military might after each major conflagration—and it has always been to ill effect. He wrote, “If there were ever evidence that it’s impossible to learn from history—or at least that it’s difficult for politicians to do so—this is it.”

The American Revolution saw a troop reduction from 35,000 to just 10,000, which weakened the nation in the wake of the Whiskey Rebellion, the quasi-war with France, the Barbary wars and the war of 1812. There was also a troop reduction after World War i, which increased vulnerabilities in the lead-up to World War ii. Boot referred to the period after the Vietnam War as the era of the “hollow army,” which was “notorious for its inadequate equipment, discipline, training and morale”—a period which further emboldened America’s enemies.

“It might still make sense to cut the defense budget—if it were bankrupting us and undermining our economic well-being. But that’s not the case,” Boot wrote. “Defense spending is less than 4 percent of gross domestic product and less than 20 percent of the federal budget. That means our armed forces are much less costly in relative terms than they were throughout much of the 20th century. Even at roughly $549 billion, our core defense budget is eminently affordable. It is, in fact, a bargain considering the historic consequences of letting our guard down.”

As other countries rise to the top in the world both economically and militarily (notably China), America and Britain demonstrate both a lack of funds and a lack of military might (as we wrote, Britain doesn’t even have enough money to protect itself against potential threats now). This leaves the Anglo-Saxon nations more vulnerable to enemies and potential threats than ever before.