For modern conservatives, one of the most sacred areas of governmental spending is the military budget. Providing for the "common defense" is, actually, one of the few, enumerated powers of the Federal government. We need to fund a strong and effective military that can carry out their constitutionally mandated role of defense. But, if we are to be intellectually honest with ourselves, we must be willing to admit that it is possible that the government bureaucrats in military procurement could be just as untrustworthy as the bureaucrats in the rest of government. After all, the Department of Defense is the only department of government that is not subject to outside audits. Just maybe, there might be a little room for some waste and corruption there? Maybe?
Beware the Military Industrial Complex! Growing up I thought this was just some term that hippie, commie-freaks used to speak out against our military power...and they did. But that is not the origin of the term or the warning. It came from the farewell speech of President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1961. Eisenhower, of course, was no stranger to the military, being a West Point graduate who became the Supreme Allied Commander of the European Theater of Operation during WWII, and a two-term President of the United States. I think he knew a little about that of which he spoke.
While Eisenhower understood that, "A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction." He recognized that the "conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry" was new to America and that "the total influence -- economic, political, even spiritual -- is felt in every city, every State house, every office of the Federal government." It was Eisenhower who warned:
"In the councils of government, we must 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."In 2001, during as Senate hearing, the late Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) questioned a requested increase in the defense budget by saying, "How can we seriously consider a $50 billion increase in the defense budget when DoD's own auditors say the department cannot account for $2.3 trillion in transactions in one year alone?" As much as I disagreed with most anything the late king of pork, Senator Byrd said...when you're right, you're right. Then Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, replied by saying, "It is...ah...I was going to say terrifying." Rumsfeld continued:
"I doubt, to be honest, that people inside the department are going to be capable of sorting this out. I have a feeling its going to take some folks from outside to come in and look at this, and put in place a process that over a period...and I regret to say, but I've seen how long things take...a period of years to sort it out. And, I think it'll probably take the cooperation of Congress to try to get the system so you can actually manage the financial aspects of that institution, rather than simply report on things that have happened imperfectly."
Questioning the military budget does not, in any way, dishonor or disparage our men and women in uniform. On the contrary, it values them more in that it insists that they not be used as pawns on a geopolitical chess board with the goal of accruing power and wealth to the members of the military industrial complex. Our citizen soldiers fight to maintain safety and liberty of their country and the ones they love...not to prop up a corrupt government and their industrialist cronies.
Think about it this way, though many have claimed that the Gulf War and Iraq War were fought for oil...where is this oil we have fought for? Oil supply is down, gas prices are soaring...it obviously wasn't a very successful venture, was it. More likely, though, it was fought to benefit the defense industry rather than the oil industry. You see, if you have a very large stockpile of bombs, ammunition, and weapons systems, you really don't need to buy any more...unless you use up what you have. For that, you need a war. I'm just sayin'.
But, regardless of the relative merits of our actions in the Middle East, the defense procurement process has a large potential for fat and waste...as well as corruption. Dr. Thomas E. Woods Jr. gives a little of the detail in the video below. As you watch it, keep an open mind, maintain your intellectual honesty, and be willing to sacrifice your own sacred cows.
