Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel unveiled the defense budget he’ll present to Congress next week. Hagel says we don’t need a huge Army, and wants to cut the Army by 13 percent, to as few as 440,000 soldiers.
Enough to fight just one war at a time, and change our world view.
“It’s a pivot to the Pacific, but that means a greater emphasis on air and sea power and a downsizing of our ground forces,” says military analyst Todd Harrison, from the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
The Obama administration wants a more nimble armed forces, that relies more on technology. That would mean fewer infantry jobs, but more drone pilots.
"The Air Force has got more drones now than it has regular combat aircraft," says former assistant defense secretary Lawrence Korb. "Even the Navy is starting to put drones on their aircraft carriers.”
There'll be fewer troops, and they'll have less generous benefits, too. The Pentagon wants to lower housing allowances, and subsidies for grocery stores on bases, called commissaries. That won’t go over well with service members, or their representatives.
“You’ve got individual members of Congress who are being hammered by constituents," says American University International Relations Professor Gordon Adams. "And members of Congress are understandably sensitive."
Asked about the politics of his budget today, Secretary Hagel said Congress had to be sensitive to the fact that we’re facing a new reality. The world is relatively peaceful today. And America's not prosperous enough to maintain the huge armies of the past.