Barry Watts goes on ABC7’s Government Matters to discuss the likely protracted period of decline in the DoD budget, and how the Pentagon can take a proactive approach to military priorities and sustaining the Defense Industrial Base.
Flanked by lethal warships and home to the advanced fighters jets parked on their expansive decks, the Navy’s aircraft carriers are perhaps the most impressive demonstration of America’s military might. But these ships are also the single most expensive piece of equipment the military buys, making them a prime — and perhaps even necessary — target in this era of fiscal belt-tightening.
Defense strategy is ultimately about making choices, which in peacetime often manifest themselves as decisions about the defense budget. As the budget gets squeezed, these choices become more difficult, and the current strategy may have to be modified or even abandoned. Yet without resource constraints, strategy would be unnecessary — the military could simply throw more money at all its problems. Limited resources thus create the need for strategy, and as resources become more constrained, strategy becomes more important. The key strategic choice facing the Pentagon now is one of timing: whether to prioritize today’s military or tomorrow’s. Given the budget drawdown currently under way, the Pentagon cannot afford to do both — it cannot get everything it wants.
The Pentagon plans to slow spending in anticipation that federal defense spending caps will remain in place throughout 2014, a senior US Defense Department official said.
The Defense Department has not created a “red team” to challenge assumptions and analysis in the Quadrennial Defense Review, fueling speculation that it might instead seek critiques from a congressionally chartered panel that will assess the QDR as it unfolds.
Slides from September 17, 2013 presentation made by Todd Harrison at the AFA Air and Space 2013 Conference.
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