MY WORDS : i use to get ticked off when the pentagon said they did not want some weapons system that was in congress, but because some legislature had a powerful position and would do deals in congress, they would continue with the weapons system, even if the military did not want it. im not sure but i think they have or will wind up with 189 F-22 i think i heard but not sure at all. but if the pentagon did not want any more and john macain voted against anymore that is good enough for me,
Defense secretary scores big wins on weapons cuts
By RICHARD LARDNER Associated Press Writer The Associated Press
Saturday, July 25, 2009 6:10 PM EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert Gates is on a roll. Question is, how long will it last?
The politically savvy defense secretary scored big legislative wins when the Senate voted convincingly to end production of the high-priced F-22 jet fighter and killed an aircraft engine project that he says isn't needed.
Gates, a Republican holdover from the Bush administration, is on a campaign to change the way the Pentagon does business. In his sights are unnecessary or financially troubled weapons that siphon money away from the troops and gear required for irregular wars now being fought in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Yet getting Capitol Hill to go along with further deep cuts to big-ticket programs remains a huge challenge as lawmakers claw to protect the jobs these projects create in their states and districts. Others have serious disagreements with the Obama administration's strategic choices.
Case in point: House lawmakers want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars for equipment Gates doesn't want, including more than $400 million for the VH-71 presidential helicopter that the Pentagon wants canceled for being behind schedule and vastly over budget.
"It's the rarest occasion when a mature weapons system, with all the contracts and subcontracts, is terminated by the Congress of the United States," Republican Sen. John McCain, who voted in favor of killing the F-22, said recently.
Those hoping the defense budget will be purged of Cold War-style weapons look to be disappointed.
Iran and North Korea are perceived threats in the short run, and superpowers China and Russia still loom as potential threats over time. That means the U.S. arsenal will remain loaded with aircraft carriers, ballistic missiles, nuclear submarines, tanks and long-range bombers like the durable B-52 of Cold War-vintage.
What Gates wants is a better balance between the heavy weapons for a large-scale war and the needs of ground troops going into their ninth year of combat against unconventional foes. For too long, he and his senior advisers have argued, those pressing demands have taken a back seat.
Defense secretary scores big wins on weapons cuts
By RICHARD LARDNER Associated Press Writer The Associated Press
Saturday, July 25, 2009 6:10 PM EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert Gates is on a roll. Question is, how long will it last?
The politically savvy defense secretary scored big legislative wins when the Senate voted convincingly to end production of the high-priced F-22 jet fighter and killed an aircraft engine project that he says isn't needed.
Gates, a Republican holdover from the Bush administration, is on a campaign to change the way the Pentagon does business. In his sights are unnecessary or financially troubled weapons that siphon money away from the troops and gear required for irregular wars now being fought in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Yet getting Capitol Hill to go along with further deep cuts to big-ticket programs remains a huge challenge as lawmakers claw to protect the jobs these projects create in their states and districts. Others have serious disagreements with the Obama administration's strategic choices.
Case in point: House lawmakers want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars for equipment Gates doesn't want, including more than $400 million for the VH-71 presidential helicopter that the Pentagon wants canceled for being behind schedule and vastly over budget.
"It's the rarest occasion when a mature weapons system, with all the contracts and subcontracts, is terminated by the Congress of the United States," Republican Sen. John McCain, who voted in favor of killing the F-22, said recently.
Those hoping the defense budget will be purged of Cold War-style weapons look to be disappointed.
Iran and North Korea are perceived threats in the short run, and superpowers China and Russia still loom as potential threats over time. That means the U.S. arsenal will remain loaded with aircraft carriers, ballistic missiles, nuclear submarines, tanks and long-range bombers like the durable B-52 of Cold War-vintage.
What Gates wants is a better balance between the heavy weapons for a large-scale war and the needs of ground troops going into their ninth year of combat against unconventional foes. For too long, he and his senior advisers have argued, those pressing demands have taken a back seat.
