When they do, they will force even harder choices in a budget that will almost surely be smaller than Trump wants. Since military pay and benefits are not likely to be reduced, appropriators will have to once again offload onto war accounts programs unrelated to war and, secondly, tap accounts slated for operations and maintenance of equipment and facilities — the crux of readiness. “At some point, it’s a zero sum game,” says Katherine Blakeley, a defense budget analyst with the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
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