White House Warns of Dire Defense Cuts

Military - and embassy security - will be slashed unless Congress acts

A "sword of Damocles" hangs over America's national defense, in the form of $120 billion spending cuts scheduled for the end of 2012. The cuts will have dire effects on military readiness and equipment, warns a White House report leaked today - and will include $129m slashed from embassy security. Defense officials add that the military would be quite simply "hollowed out" by the cutbacks.

The cuts are part of the "sequester" agreed on in the debt ceiling deal last summer. According to the deal, the only way to avert the sequester is for Congress to cut the debt by $1.2 trillion, by raising taxes and cutting spending.

Everyone hates sequestration because it indiscriminately cuts programs across the board, whereas a plan agreed by Congress could target the cuts to where they'll hurt the least.

Democrats argue that the only way out of the hole is to raise taxes on wealthy Americans. Republicans blame Democrats for cutting the deal on sequestration in the first place.

Most defense programs will be cut by 9.4%, and others will be cut by 10%. Medicare would be cut 2%, and other domestic programs cut up to 8.2%.

Via Politico and the Washington Post.

Posted Sept 14, 2pm PST.

Are you concerned about the scheduled defense cuts?

[ram84]

Defense cuts in the midst of middle-eastern uprisings against Americans ...and not to mention threats against our soil Wich have always been there but seem more concievable these days ....what is going on in these peoples minds

[Gilbert]

No it really doesn't matter because the cuts aren't scheduled until after the end of days anyway.

[ram84]

End of days?? Just want to be on same page :)

[Gilbert]

@ram84 I have incredible foresight and vision matched by no other.

[ram84]

@Gilbert I don't doubt very bad things are on the horizon.

[Wilberhum]

Am I concerned about the scheduled defense cuts? No. I think we need serious defense cuts and we need to stop being the world's police. But all that is need to stop the cuts is for Congress to do it's job.

[Nemesis3X]

If they really wanted to they could probably cut the budget without "dire" consequences. I'm sure a lot of it is fraud and waste by all politicians and their cronies on both sides of the isle.

[Fishbone345]

@Nemesis3X Hell yes! Lobbyists for big Defense Contractors lining the pockets of our elected Congress and we wonder why the Defense Budget is such a huge part of the Deficit?
It's not rocket science.

[FollowTheMoney]

@Fishbone345 Good point. The defense budget doesn't have to be as high as it is.

[FollowTheMoney]

Well yeah, the middle east war is escalating.

[FollowTheMoney]

The timing is suspect. I believe government knew this was coming, and were waiting for the right time to spring it on us.

[hwyangel]

Is anyone really surprised?
Take our guns, open the boarders, fund abortions, and cut defense, and add a president that bows to a Saudi king and refuses to salute the American flag.......

[dances-weebles]

i think that you've been listening to too much cb radio again.

[Fishbone345]

The President or anyone else saluting the flag who isn't in uniform spits on the military and hundreds of years of tradition. The traditional thing for civilians to do is put their hand over their heart when the Pledge is being said, or the Anthem is being played (also men and women should remove their hats). So.. BZZZZT! Wrong.

Oh and to address that nasty rumor you obviously accept as reality.
http://www.factcheck.org/2010/01/mirror-image...
http://www.factcheck.org/2009/11/whats-wrong-...

And for the tradition part.
http://www.americanflags.org/docs/etiquette.j...

I don't like a lot of things that the President is doing or has done. But, I choose to dislike his policies based on reality. I don't have to make shit up to do it.

[DARSB]

"Take our guns" - Except in Aurora, Colorado, Tuscon, Arizone, Fort Hood, Virginia Tech, New York City, Chicago...

"open the boarders" - I dunno what dissecting renters has to do with anything...

" fund abortions" - Nope, Hyde Amendment still in effect.

"cut defense" Even though each of his budgets has been rejected by Congress it's President Obama's doing that DoD spending has increased.

"president that bows to a Saudi king" - ever met the Queen of England, sweetie? You'd be expected to courtsey, your male escort to bow. Why? Because the sovereignty of a monarchy resides in the monarch, not the citizenry. In a republic like ours that fought a lengthy war against Britain sovereignty lies in the citizens, not the President.

"and refuses to salute the American flag" - "Your flag decal won't get you into Heaven anymore" - John Prine.

[CanadianIndy]

@DARSB I agree. Especially in regards to Her Majesty. It's more a sign of respect to other respected people to bow to them, as is the custom in their country/nation. This is the same argument that can be made about whether or not a US official greets citizens in a foreign country in their own tongue, such as Arabic, Spanish, French, Russian, German, Punjab, etc. If you wish for another country to respect yours, you cannot just /expect/ respect. Respect is earned, not given. As the Bible says: "Do unto others as you would have them do to you."

[Fishbone345]

@DARSB First the Nurse thing, then the John Prine thing. I love Prine!
"That's the Way that the World goes Round" is my favorite.

[Nemesis3X]

"and will include $129 slashed from embassy security." $129? So they won't be able to buy one over-priced hammer? I think something is amiss!

[Thunderchicken]

"include $129m slashed"

Type O? I think the lower case "m" is supposed to be an upper case "M" .

[Nemesis3X]

@Thunderchicken They just added it. I copied and pasted from the article! There was no "m". Now I'm just nit-pickin'. I'll stop.

[Thunderchicken]

@Nemesis3X

I was wondering about that.(Of course that was after I hit post.):-(

[Fishbone345]

Hopefully they are referring to closing Embassies and bringing our people home. There is obviously no need in having them there, they don't want to talk peace.

[citizen7]

It is very suspect. However, I believe with this cut should come a cut in all foreign aid and our military being there. Bring our military home and stop all this aid and war spending we could be out of debt, self sufficient and able to protect our own.

[Just_Lisa]

Vote up X 1000!!

[Fishbone345]

Hear hear! Lets hear it for Dr. Paul's ideas!

[Buzzfriendly]

Borrow something from private industry. Perhaps we could hire the Chinese to defend us. We already owe them so much money they have just as much to loose as we do if we are attacked. Our soldiers won't be hurt, and it would us cost a fraction of the price.

[CanisCanemEdit]

BEST ORIGINAL IDEA OF THE DAY!!

I raise my Glenfiddich to you sir.

[ir0nw0lfe]

Only if we are concerned about the security of American interests here and abroad. So far I'm not convinced this administration is serious or even has a clue as to what they are really dealing with here.

[Nemesis3X]

What I think I'm going to look into is if Homeland security and TSA are included in these cuts or not. If not, a big warning flag for me!!!!!

[ir0nw0lfe]

@Nemesis3X neither fall under DoD

[artjeb]

I have the same idea.
Just what is going on with the present addministration ?
Is it one well organized bit of mass confusion?

[ir0nw0lfe]

@artjeb mass delusion. Not so well organized.

Ever heard of the saying, Everybody in a fight has a plan that lasts until the first punch. Well, this administrative just took one to the gut. Obama and Hillary are bewildered by the concept that reality doesn't contort itself to fit their ideology. Who knew?

Apparently Egypt, Libya, and the rest of the ME don't really care if his middle name is Hussein. I really hope he wasn't counting on that. Vanity doesn't replace strategy. Too bad this administration has none. I guess we could apologize some more for something we didn't do.....

[artjeb]

@ir0nw0lfe 100 % agreed . thanks

[Lorth]

Cut 'em. If we can't defend ourselves with 571 billion dollars we are too stupid to survive another year.

[Jeff_Woehrle]

Embassy security? That's a hoot. The Marines guarding were not even allowed to have live ammunition. Guess someone's 'feelings' may be hurt, eh?

[Fem76]

This is not the first time I heard this. But where can I find info on it?

[CanisCanemEdit]

@Fem76 -

So far the best report I have read from a legitimate source.

http://nation.time.com/2012/09/13/whats-worse...

Time magazine website

What’s Worse: No Marines, or (Possibly) Unarmed Marines?

UPDATE II: The Marines said late Thursday that any reports “of Marines not being able to have their weapons loaded per direction from the ambassador are not accurate.”

UPDATE:“With or without a weapon, Marines are always armed,” Pentagon spokesman George Little said Thursday afternoon.“I’ve heard nothing to suggest they don’t have ammunition.”

[Thunderchicken]

Is anyone besides me surprised that our middle eastern embassies were apparently easily breached? I would expect them to be miniature fortresses.

[Thunderchicken]

"Democrats argue that the only way out of the hole is to raise taxes on wealthy Americans."

Must be the new math.

[Fishbone345]

It's definitely not in the math we learned in school huh?
The only way to decrease the Budget and pay bills is to..... reduce the spending on items in the Budget. One of which is the Defense Budget, one of the largest I might add.

[marine1]

@Fishbone345 bull hocky. what about all the pork they all try to attach to legislation that in and by itself might actually do some good. All goverment is so corrupt that they will never do what is best for the people

[Fishbone345]

@marine1 The bill to law process is indeed an unnecessarily complicated process. It needs to seriously die in a fire the way they do things to put through their ideas.
That said, the bill process isn't what we are talking about here. The Budget needs to be reduced. That's fact, whether you like it or not.

[marine1]

@Fishbone345 I like it , i have always believed that if you can't afford it you shouldn't spend the money.

[dances-weebles]

no... it's about time.

[Just_Lisa]

I didn't expect anything less from the apologizer in chief. Yes it worries me.
How much more obvious does oboma have to be with his intentions? Our military has rubber bullets at these embassies. RUBBER. On 9 11. And today. RUBBER BULLETS.

Just wow.

[Chomsky0]

I hope the cuts are enough. We should then focus on real "defense", the war budget is a big cause of why America is debt. The war budget and our failed privatized medical system are bankrupting us.

[DocPolitics]

Can we bomb all the islamic radicals that are rioting and acting up before the cuts?

[artjeb]

That's a good idea.
do it & get it done

[Bambi]

Well, of course, let's just cut our defenseive capabilities way back now while we really need to be strong in our defense. It's not like we're being attacked anywhere or anything.
What an idiotic idea. It's not like it can't be canceled and go cut something else way back. Like obama's rides in AF1 and michele's spending and traveling and spending. That'd be half of it there.

[artjeb]

If thhere is to be cuts do it to congress pay.
There is enough money there to cover the cuts being thought about.
why not ? congress doesn't do much but collect good benifits that we pay for.

[Wooky]

Let them uprise once they cross over to US soil blast there asses to kingdom come! We can't police the entire world!!