Exclusive: America has ‘reached the point of no return,’ Reagan budget director warns

[unhappycamper]

Exclusive: America has ‘reached the point of no return,’ Reagan budget director warns
By Nathan Diebenow
Monday, January 10th, 2011 -- 8:53 am

The Obama administration's $78 billion cut to US defense spending is a mere "pin-prick" to a behemoth military-industrial complex that must drastically shrink for the good of the republic, a former Reagan administration budget director recently told Raw Story.

"It amounts to a failed opportunity to recognize that we are now at a historical inflection point at which the time has arrived for a classic post-war demobilization of the entire military establishment," David Stockman said in an exclusive interview.

"The Cold War is long over," he continued. "The wars of occupation are almost over and were complete failures -- Afghanistan and Iraq. The American empire is done. There are no real seriously armed enemies left in the world that can possibly justify an $800 billion national defense and security establishment, including Homeland Security."

Short of that, he suggested, the United States has "reached the point of no return" with its artificial creation of wealth, and will eventually face a sharp economic decline.

Stockman last fall criticized the extension of the Bush tax cuts while the federal government continued to borrow money abroad to pay for its public welfare and warfare programs. His solution to deficit spending -- a huge across-the-board tax increase -- is contrary to the current anti-tax ideology shared among tea party activists as well as fiscal conservatives in the Republican Party.

[n2doc]

1. Our biggest enemies use economic, not military, weapons n/t

[hobbit709]

2. The Roman Empire started to collapse when they couldn't sustain the expense.

History always repeats.

[harun]

3. I think Reagan's guys feel guilty for having started this ideology.

None of them thought people would actually carry it out to their extremes, like they are now.

[immoderate]

7. That's the problem of "nobody in charge." Namely Reagan.

--imm

[DemoTex]

11. G.H.W. "Poppy" Bush was "in charge" ..

Ergo Iran-Contra and other CIA/Military-Industrial-Complex wet dreams.

[WinkyDink]

17. Especially after the Hinckley Reminder.

[xchrom]

4. and from a republican. nt

[liberal N proud]

5. And where did this out of control mess begin?

A big thing called Reaganomics!

[CTyankee]

8. In fairness, Stockman did say something against Reaganomics.

at the time. That was when Reagan "took him to the woodshed." Stockman is now kinda sorry this whole thing got started. I'd like to hear more from him along these lines. Maybe he can browbeat some of his fellow pubs. His wife is a very strong supporter of reproductive rights so they ain't all bad...

[fasttense]

6. Maybe that $140 billion tax give away to the uber rich wasn't such a good idea? n/t

[doc03]

9. I heard a Pentagon spokesman on TV just a couple days ago

say we just can't cut $78 billion out of the Pentagon budget, it would be devastating to national security.

[femrap]

10. These military

boyz must have their budgets or they become flaccid....viagra won't even work.

GI Joes and all of those toy soldiers and guns should be outlawed. Teach war as war is....horrid.

[jeanpalmer]

14. And that's $78 billion in cuts over 5 years

or $15.6 billion a year out of a $725 billion budget. Almost nothing.

[kentuck]

12. Since when does the Secretary of Defense set his own budget?

I thought it was up to Congress to make the cuts?

[Statistical]

18. I think it is the proposed budget.

Only Congress can pass the budget.

Usually departments do give insight though. Programs which can be cut, or expanded. Expected costs, etc.

[bvar22]

13. I'm still waiting for my "Peace Dividend". (Remember that?)

”Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children."
---Republican President Dwight Eisenhower

[johnroshan]

20. That is an amazing quote. Especially the last two lines.

If you take all the geniuses who work in the military and set them to work in civilian sectors, I can even begin to imagine the breakthroughs they might have come up with. Why does the military have the best? Why do the best of us work on finding ways to kill others rather than to help?

[jeanpalmer]

15. Stockman is making a lot of sense here

and is recommending the only course of action that can save us -- cut defense spending drastically and raise taxes. Unfortunately, he's the only one saying it. Obama should have hired him as budget director. Stockman has the ability and willingness to make the case to the people.

That whole article was great. Everything he said was mostly spot on. You wonder if anyone will listen to him. Time is running out.

[Statistical]

16. Shit when Reagan's budget director is to the left of Obama on military spending & taxes...

....

....

....
well honestly I don't know what to say.

[Carolina]

19. exactly!