In the spring of 2016, a bipartisan group of prominent national security figures called on U.S. policymakers to address the unsustainable and rapidly increasing national debt.
These national security experts said in a statement: “As individuals who have served the nation in both international and domestic leadership roles, we continue to believe that our long-term debt is the single greatest threat to our national security.”
The bipartisan group called itself the Coalition for Fiscal and National Security, chaired by retired Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The coalition included former Secretaries of State Madeleine Albright and Henry Kissinger, former Defense Secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta, and former National Security Advisors Zbigniew Brzezinski and Brent Scowcroft.
Unfortunately, 2016 presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump never mentioned how they would tackle the national debt or the security threat it represents. With the national debt hovering around $20 trillion, now is the time to act and reduce our national debt by reforming the Pentagon’s spending.
Prior Presidents Have Failed at Pentagon Reform
Throughout American history, presidents from both parties have spoken of reforming the Pentagon. But that history is littered with failed attempts at change. Each administration gets tangled in the bureaucratic maze of politics because every defense program has an entrenched political constituency.
In the final days of his administration, President Eisenhower gave his famous farewell address. He urged the nation to “guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.” Unfortunately, the U.S. has failed to heed his wise counsel.
Continue reading here.