U. S. Defends Self

The national defense budget is split up into two accounts; the base defense budget for the year, at $507 billion, and the special war-time budget at $141.8 billion. The U. S. Senate Committee on Armed Services moved $12 billion dollars from the war-time budget to the base budget in order to supply for ongoing programs. Some intriguing big- ticket items:

• “Adding approximately $300 million to the budget request to provide
increased space situational awareness capabilities to address concerns
raised as a result of the recent Chinese kinetic anti-satellite weapons test.”

• “Authorizing $135 billion for military personnel, including costs of pay,
allowances, bonuses, death benefits, and permanent change of station
moves. Authorizing a 3.5 percent across-the-board pay raise for all uniformed
service personnel.”

• “Authorizing construction for five warships and provided multiyear
procurement authority for fiscal year 2009 – 2013 Virginia class
submarines.”

It’s good to know at least some of our taxes are being put to good use. This plan doesn’t just focus on the war, though. It allows for multiple expenditures on defense and prevention that Americans may take for granted. The new budget addresses Nuclear weapons efficiency:

• Added $10 million for nuclear weapons incident response.

• Added $62.4 million to enhance security at Department of Energy nuclear sites.

• Added $36.8 million to reduce deferred maintenance within the nuclear weapons complex.

Jeremy Hempel is an intern at the American Journalism Center, a training program run by Accuracy in Media and Accuracy in Academia.