DEFENSE BUDGET?

Our sad little Congress managed to pass a defense budget of a sort before their recess. Maybe after recess we can give them milk and cookies and put them down for a long nap. Suffice to say the nation is a tad more secure, at least until after Labor Day. The defense authorization approved by these merry men and women did not include funds for the Iraq and Afghanistan fronts, setting up another session of political theater in September to coincide with the surge review from General Petraeus.


Highlights and lowlights of the authorization included:

- added funds for National Guard and Reserve equipment (much needed);

- an additional 12,000 soldiers and marines (not enough);

- added funds for military healthcare and housing (not enough);

- funds to continue the F-22 Raptor program (right on);

- an increase of $1B to $8.5B for SDI (commendable, but not enough);

- a military pay increase of 3.5 percent, 0.5 percent more than Bush asked for (?);

- funds for 12 additional naval vessels, 5 more than the Pentagon asked for; and

- a nasty little bitter pill banning permanent bases in Iraq.


I cannot explain the administration asking for anything other than the maximum pay raise they can wring out of Congress. Perhaps other budget priorities forced that move. The ship funding is also classic U.S. Congress, building more ships than the Navy even requested. Situations like that create waste and mismanagement. The bit about permanent bases in Iraq is laughable. I guess it will all swing on who defines "permanent", but it could lead to substandard housing for our forces in Iraq.

The worst part of the budget is what's not there. No funds for the Iraq or Afghanistan were provided, oddly enough. That is no accident and reflects the extreme politicization of the war by the Democrap Congress. September will present an opportunity for the surrender monkeys to hurl feces at the President and our military, and you can bet they'll take every chance they can get. No matter what the surge evaluation says, preliminary as it will be, the Dems will paint the worst possible picture they can. They have invested themselves in defeat and cannot change course . If our commander on the scene reports good news, it will be distorted and twisted by the Dems and the media. Failure to fully fund national defense in order to set up a Congressional drama is despicable.

Congress should be applauded for many elements of the budget, but the rotten parts and the theater set up override the positive notes. We should all try to enjoy the next several weeks without Congress, because their return will not be pleasant. This Congress has a slim record of actual legislation and a thick record of political squawking, most of it aiding and abetting the propaganda arms of Al Qaeda. This new boss is much worse than the old boss, expecially because of their pious attitude toward ethics. Perhaps the Army can provide them with a copy of the Code of Conduct, an item sorely needed on the Hill.

JINGOCON