Less bad does not mean good: Why the budget deal is bad for defense
Bryan McGrath argues that while a debt deal was necessary, it falls far short of a win for the US military.
By BRYAN MCGRATH
on June 06, 2023 at 11:15 AM
As the defense community digests the impact of the debt ceiling deal on national security spending, there are differing opinions about whether the agreement should count as a win or a loss for the Pentagon. Last week, former Pentagon comptroller Elaine McCusker argued that the agreement, while imperfect, could have been much worse. In the following response, Bryan McGrath, managing director of The FerryBridge Group, says the reality is much worse than that initial assessment.
In an op-ed for Breaking Defense published, former Defense Department official and Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute Elaine McCusker went too far last week (“Why the budget deal is good news for defense—with one key exception”) in attempting to cast a positive light on the recent budget deal allowing for a debt limit increase. The essence of her argument is contained in the essay’s final sentence: “Even though the defense caps are too low and will need to be reconsidered, the agreement to raise the debt limit and set spending caps is positive in that it mitigates further damage to the economy. It frees defense spending from attachment to domestic budgets and sets the stage for a return to long-awaited regular order on annual appropriations bills.”
While she is correct that the agreement overall was positive in mitigating further damage to the economy, she understates the damage done to the defense budget at a precarious time — precarious due both to when it occurs in the budget process and as a response to a worsening global security environment.
https://breakingdefense.com/2023/06/less-bad-does-not-mean-good-why-the-budget-deal-is-bad-for-defense/
