The last-minute scramble by Congress to avoid the fiscal cliff averted the doomsday scenario of sequestration cuts kicking in this week, but Pentagon officials are fully aware that the war is not over.
When lawmakers agreed to put off the looming sequester by two months to give themselves more time to hammer out a deficit-reduction deal, they also added a little protection for the Defense Department and other federal agencies in case Congress and the White House fail to reach an agreement by March 1.
Job furloughs for the civilian defense workforce won’t be used right away if a deal is not struck this week to avert the fiscal cliff, but the Pentagon’s top leader said temporary layoffs later might be unavoidable.
The defense industry is urging Congress to delay the fight over taxes and focus on avoiding the automatic budget cuts that begin in six days/…/
Russia sealed $2.9 billion of weapons contracts Monday with India, as President Vladimir Putin visited his nation’s top arms customer for the first time since returning to the Kremlin in May.
Since late 2011, defense contractors big and small have been planning for the previously announced reduction in defense spending of $487 billion over 10 years. But they could lose an additional $492 billion under sequestration, the automatic spending cuts that kick in on Jan. 2 if lawmakers on Capitol Hill and the White House fail to reconcile their differences.
1667 K Street NW Suite 900
Washington DC, 20006
202-331-7990
info@csbaonline.org
