The Pros And Cons Of US Defense Spending

The United States is the military powerhouse of the world and there is no question of that. The US has the most advanced military, and has been the number one global power ever since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Today the United States has largest defense budget by far in the world. With such a large military budget and the fact that the United States is falling behind the rest of the world on domestic issues such as healthcare, we must ask ourselves, is it really necessary? US defense spending should be cut back with correcting unjustified spending, establishing proper financial records, and being more involved in international cooperation groups to prepare for real threats.

The American military has many expenses and needs to carry

According to Thomas E. Woods Jr., a senior fellow of the Mises Institute, “It is not uncommon for the Pentagon not to know whether contractors have been paid twice, or not at all.” The American military budget is the largest percentage of the entire federal budget. How do we know how much they have spent? How much they have wasted? “$250 billion is spent every year” states Woods, “maintaining a global military presence that includes 865 facilities in more than 40 countries, and 190,000 troops stationed in 46 countries and territories.” America could be the world’s police force, but the problem is that the American people do not want to be. Some people want that position; however, many are not willing to put in the resources and casualties to maintain that position. But why do we really need all these bases all over the world? Do these really help us defend our homeland? With the size of our military the solution is not more spending, but to cut back and increase efficiency in out spending. Politicians say they want to balance the budget and reduce deficits, but they will not hold the military accountable for its spending. Instead of only looking within our country for solutions, we can also look to the world as a

Many see the potential return of Russia as a reason to maintain a massive military. Russia today is really not as powerful as people think they are. Joss Meakins, a graduate of Columbia University studying Russian politics and security, wrote an article called “Why Russia is Far Less Threatening Than it Seems” discussing the weaknesses of Russia. Russia (formerly the USSR) was the United States’ main adversary for half a century, so it makes sense that the United States does not want them to come back to power. But keeping a massive military for this overblown enemy is not worthwhile. According to Meakins “21.4 million Russians, or 14.6 percent of the population, now live below the national poverty line and the number of Russians earning less than $10 a day has increased 8 percent.” The Russian people are not ready for a full scale war with America and all of NATO. They can not provide for their own citizens well being, not even provide health care. According to Meakins “Roughly 85,000 rural communities have no medical infrastructure whatsoever.” Russia is a weakened state not fit to take the mantle of a global