Last year, Congress passed $487 billion in defense cuts as part of the Budget Control Act of 2011. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has said these cuts will be tough to make, but are feasible without threatening our troops or our national security. However, by failing to reach agreement on additional cuts also called for by this law, Congress has triggered “sequestration,” a second round even deeper cuts to our military that will take effect starting in January 2013.
Taken together, these additional cuts, totaling $500 billion over 10 years, represent an unprecedented reduction of the U.S. defense budget during wartime, made more shocking because they’re the result of partisan gridlock rather than thoughtful policy. The additional cuts resulting from sequestration will be especially devastating because they fall automatically across-the-board, slashing every single Pentagon program equally and indiscriminately, from ballpoint pens for the Pentagon to body armor for soldiers and marines. No one thinks this would be a responsible way to proceed.
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