http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/apr/10/rick-perry-both-parties-have-gutted-our-defenses/ By David Sherfinski - The Washington Times - Friday, April 10, 2015
Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry is calling out both Democrats and Republicans for what he described as depleted armed forces and an aging military infrastructure, saying the two parties have “treated our defense forces as a pawn in a budgetary game of chicken.”
Facing overseas threats, Mr. Perry wrote, the Obama administration has made “grave miscalculations,” accusing the administration of “wishful thinking instead of making sober assessments based on realities on the ground.”
“Moreover, the Obama administration and Congress have failed to prioritize military spending, and our preparedness is suffering as a result. After two grueling wars and a weak economy at home, our military is being decimated by major budget cuts,” Mr. Perry wrote in a piece for the New Hampshire Union Leader. “Because of the failed leadership of both parties — who treated our defense forces as a pawn in a budgetary game of chicken — our armed forces are depleted, our military infrastructure is aging, and our technological advantages are being severely challenged at a time when the world is increasingly dangerous.”
Mr. Perry, who is weighing another run for president in 2016, went on to write that the Republican-led Congress is making some progress on increasing defense spending, but that the defense spending in the current budget is still “insufficient.”
The House and Senate each advanced their respective budget blueprints last month that both boost money for the Pentagon through war spending so as to not break through budget sequester caps. Members return next week, when they will try to reconcile the differences ahead of an April 15 deadline.
“If I were president today, I would reframe the entire defense debate: from what do we have leftover to spend on defense to what we must spend to keep America safe,” Mr. Perry wrote. “It is time to tell the truth to the American people that both parties have gutted our defenses rather than impose spending discipline on other areas of government. It is time to get real about the fact that while our enemies are building ships, we are reducing the size of our fleet. That while fanatics are growing their armies, ours is at risk of being reduced to dangerous lows.”
Mr. Perry also cited his military experience as a former captain in the Air Force.
“Let no one mistake a call for the rebuilding of our defenses as a call for increased war,” he also wrote. “Just the opposite: You avoid war by demonstrating an overwhelming capability to win it. The relative stability of the Eisenhower and Reagan years prove this very point. The instability of the Obama years prove it just as well.”
