Obama's Defense Secretary warns that defense cuts could lead to attacks on the United States

[Cali_Democrat]

Panetta Plays Last Card, Warns Defense Cuts Could Lead to Attack on the U.S.
Updated: November 10, 2011 | 8:08 p.m.
By Yochi J. Dreazen

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has been steadily escalating his warnings about the impact of the deep cuts facing the Pentagon if the congressional super committee fails to reach a deal. On Thursday, he played the last – and strongest -- card in his deck, arguing that the hundreds of billions of dollars of mandatory cuts would directly imperil U.S. national security.

<snip>

Lawmakers, Panetta said, needed to understand that U.S. troops “are willing to put their lives on the line to sacrifice for this country; you sure as hell can sacrifice to provide a little leadership to get the solution we need in order to solve this problem.”

He went even further on Thursday, using arguably the strongest rhetorical weapon in his arsenal. Mandatory defense cuts, he warned, would weaken the armed forces to the point that enemies would be emboldened to attack the U.S.

“In effect, it invites aggression," Panetta said during the new conference, just his second since taking office in July.

Read more: http://nationaljournal.com/nationalsecurity/panetta-plays-last-card-warns-defense-cuts-could-lead-to-attack-on-the-u-s--20111110

There's only one thing you can say about this fear-mongering garbage:

BULLSHIT!!!!

[Autumn]

1. His must not be able to see out of his eyes

because he is so full of shit.

[teddy51]

2. Yep, he seems to be every bit as bad as the Bush crew with his BS. n/t

[villager]

4. As do most Democratic aparatchiks, really. They have the same owners, after all

n/t

[Hutzpa]

21. You know I'm beginning to believe this when

it comes to defense, be it democrats and republicans they seem to work for the same master,
it's like something is got them spooked.

You can have total faith on them and then swoosh they sweep your faith in them right out
of you chest.

[JayhawkSD]

31. "be it democrats and republicans they seem to work for the same master"

Indeed they do. They work for the "military industrial complex" which feeds off of defense spending.

That is the issue that I have with "Occupy Wall Street." They are targeting the wrong enemy. Wall Street does not control our government, the defense contractors do, because it is they who control our defense spending and, more, controls "national security" spending, and that complex is not headquartered in Wall Street, it is centered in the Pentagon.

If OWS really wanted to "speak to directly those who control our government" they would occupy the Pentagon.

[arcane1]

3. Arcane1 warns that Leon Panetta is an asshole and part of the problem n/t

[LWolf]

14. Yep. nt

[Old Codger]

5. Yes

Be AFRAID be very AFRAID

[FirstLight]

6. guh...

that's what they always say...

fuck, can we just take control of our government and fix this shit? I am ready for the revolution....
the DOD has noone to fear but itself.
when the 99% finish revamping the economy, there will be a whole lot less money for bombs and war and a whole lot more for the environment and humanity...
seriously

[ProSense]

7. Panetta's

thinking is completely flawed. From his press conference

<...>

This process -- and I've required this from the beginning -- has to be driven by strategy. It has to be strategy-driven. And it also has to be a team effort. My hope is that, you know, as we work through this, that we will put the entire leadership of the department, both military and civilian, in the same place so that we can finalize this effort within the coming weeks.

So as we move ahead with this process within the department, all of us are obviously watching closely what happens on Capitol Hill and with the congressional supercommittee. And we watch it, obviously, with great concern. As you know, if the supercommittee fails to reach an agreement with regards to additional budget savings, the penalty for that is sequester. And this sequester approach would virtually double the size of the cuts that we face here at the Defense Department. And it would also force us to cut across the board. All of these cuts would occur -- I think this takes effect in January of 2013 so that, obviously, we would have a year where sequester would hang as a shadow over this department.

I've learned that by cutting in excess of 20 percent in every area, sequester will lead to a hollow force. And let me explain just exactly what we're talking about when we talk about a hollow force. Obviously, that which is hollow retains a shell but lacks a core. A hollow military has the organizational structure but lacks the people, the training and the equipment it needs to actually get the job done.

It's a ship without sailors. It's a brigade without bullets. It's an air wing without enough trained pilots. It's a paper tiger, an Army of barracks, buildings and bombs without enough trained soldiers able to accomplish the mission. It's a force that suffers low morale, poor readiness and is unable to keep up with potential adversaries. In effect, it invites aggression.

<...>

His opinion is also irrelevant. Congress has already agreed to defense cuts under the trigger in the deal that was signed into law. If the Super Committee fails to come to an agreement, the cuts are automatic.

No amount of fear mongering is going to change that.

[jwirr]

13. We know that but I think the whole BS is really meant to scare the

congress into not cutting the MIC. Congress sees him as someone who knows what he is talking about and they run scared whenever he opens his idiot mouth.

What position did he have in Clinton's administration?

[ieoeja]

18. If their plan is a "hollow military" then I suggest they read "The Forgotten War".

The regular US Army has never been the US Marines, but they were far worse in comparison than usual at the outset of the Korean Conflict. Most reasons (aside from MacArthur) for that involve how the Marines and Army handled the post-WWII military cuts.

The Marines put everyone into a single Division (that was still under-sized). The Army had enough personnel for several full-sized Divisions, but spread them out so their Divisions were even more under-sized than the one Marine division.

The Army also got rid of higher paid, more experienced soldiers to keep their numbers higher. While the Marines opted to keep the more experienced marines even though they knew it would deflate their numbers.

Basically, the Marines went with quality while the Army went with quantity. And the difference showed big time at Pusan. Three attempts were made to break out of Pusan. Marines, anchoring the southwest end, broke out the first two times then fell back when the Army failed to break the rest of the North Korean line. On the third attempt the Marines pulled a Sparta-at-Corinth move, swung north after the breakout, came on the rear of the North Koreans facing the nearest Army units which began a dominoing effect up the line.

[indepat]

8. Thankfully, deep cuts in social security, Medicare, and Medicaid will not imperil

the lives/well-being of any of the old, frail, or poor while cutting back MIC spending to 45-46% of the world's (with 5% of the population) will imperil our national security. It's as if the lack of jobs, a horrible standard of living for tens of millions, the lack of access to medical care for tens of millions, a crumbling infrastructure, more than 40 million people on food stamps, tens of millions under water on their mortgages, obscene and burgeoning income inequality et al don't imperil our national security/well-being. Jeez. If Amurikans could just learn to keep their priorities straight. :patriot:

[Vattel]

30. awesome post.

[indepat]

33. Colorful descriptive adjectives are sometime used in response to my posts, but

never recall awesome heretofore being among those. :loveya: ;)

[lunatica]

9. He obviously doesn't have a clue as to how utterly ridiculous he sounds

[msongs]

10. the primary purpose of US military is to protect profits of war materials corporations nt

[dballance]

11. We could probably cut defense spending by half...

And STILL be spending more than all other nations combined. What friggin BULLSHIT these people propagate. With all the nukes we have in missile silos and submarines who the hell is going to launch a full-scale attack on us? It would be suicide.

And we proven you can't fight terrorism with conventional armed forces. So it's a waste of my tax dollars.

[jwirr]

12. So cutting one of our over seas bases - say in Europe will lead to

our being attacked? This man is not very creative.

[MissDeeds]

15. Absolutely absurd n/t

[totodeinhere]

16. I am very disappointed in Leon Panetta. It seems that he has sold out to the dark side.

I have read good things about his tenure in Congress, but that seems to be ancient history now.

[liam_laddie]

25. "Seems" to have sold out?

:thumbsdown: There is absolutely no doubt that he is a mouthpiece for the M-I complex. They will NOT give up their bloated budgets without a major struggle. One hopes that sensible forces within Congress and the Administration will see through the scare tactics and apply controls to the Pentagon's infinite greed. How many flag-rank officers occupy fancy offices there? Compared to command staff levels during WWII? It's astrounding how self-serving the military's top ranks are. No doubt many attempt to serve the Country, but many ride the gravy train to "retirement" and cushy positions in the arms industry...lobbyists, facilitators, executives, whores. It's disgusting!

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

17. From the aliens in that shitty

Will Smith movie?

:shrug:




.

[GeorgeGist]

19. Yeah like they protected us so well on 9/11.

[bvar22]

20. OMG... Anything but THAT.

We're gonna hafta cut Medicare, Social Security, and spending on the Poor and Sick,
but INCREASE Military Spending,

Or The TERRERASTS
are gonna ATTACK!!!!
Boogga, Boogga, Boogga!!!:scared:




If you're not FOR Increasing Military Spending & Cutting Social Security,
you're WITH The Communists AlQaeda The Terrorists Saddam Qaddafi The Terrorists (again)!!!

[Lasher]

22. Makes ya wonder how China manages to stave off the Mongol hordes with so much less to spend.

Of all the military spending in the world, we spend at least 43% of the total. Next comes China at 7.3%. I we were to cut our defense spending in half, we would still be spending three times as much as China.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures#SIPRI_Yearbook_2010

Panetta can't defend our country with three times as much money as the next biggest spender on earth? Sounds like we need to replace him with a Secretary of Defense who can.

[sakabatou]

23. Where's my fucking clue-by-four?!

[Hawkowl]

24. FUCK HIM.

What might lead to attacks on the US, is the fact the military and CIA murdering innocent civilians every goddamned day! Maybe if we had a much smaller military it could manage to stay out of trouble and make Americans more likeable as a whole.

Panetta, what a piece of human excrement.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

26. With all the spending by Rumsfeld, America was attacked

[KoKo]

27. Disgusting. More Bush years kind of propagandizing from Neo-Cons.. n/t

[paulk]

28. i'm scared

I guess I'll have to lose my home to the enemy hordes rather than the bank.

[Mz Pip]

29. Yeah, like another aircraft carrier

or stealth bomber is going to make one bit of difference against some thugs with plastic explosives strapped to their chests.

[Vattel]

32. Everyone seems to agree with you CaliDemocrat

but you have zero recs. Me thinks you don't love Obama enough.

[hulka38]

34. It's what Cheney would say.

How is it any different?

[The Wizard]

35. History shows

that on September 11, 2001 the United States was spending more on defense than the rest of the world combined. How'd that work out? The military industrial complex, aided and abetted by the fascist media, has driven us to chapter 11. Wasting our treasure on defending against mythical foes has cost the American people a secure future.
The reason they get away with the wholesale treasury looting is because this is the dumbest country on Earth. The yokels believe chanting USA repeatedly makes this the greatest country on Earth. And we have the greatest health care in the world, blah blah blah yak yak yak.
The masses have been duped by History's greatest propaganda machine. Imagine Goebbels with TV and on steroids.
The Chinese have a Great Wall. We're trying to protect ourselves with a Great Electrified Fence. Now that we've squandered our resources on unbridled defense spending, the Chinese are able to enslave us economically because they directed their efforts toward something more realistic in today's world, manufacturing. Learn Mandarin.

[hulka38]

36. What does repeating the same preposterous and asinine lies

told by the neocons say about Obama and the Democratic Party leadership. What does it say about those who believe these lies because it comes from a messenger of a different name?

[Cali_Democrat]

37. Well said!

I feel pretty much the same way.