By Lauren C. Williams
Mar 03, 2021
The Defense Department will likely have to look even deeper for cost-savings as flat budget looms for 2022 and beyond.
Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the chairman for the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that while topline budget numbers don t adequately reflect value, the Pentagon and military services should look for cost-savings and where reinvestments can be made. One of the ironies of the Budget Control Act was that it was designed to reduce the deficit but after a while it actually became a force to, I think, increase spending because Republicans want strong defense spending. We re 50-50 split and we would get strong domestic spending and ironically it led to the budget you ve seen the last few years. That s now gone, Reed told reporters Feb. 24 during a Defense Writers Group virtual event.
Chief of Space Operations Gen. Jay Raymond, fresh from a White House snub earlier this month, is making the case for the importance of the Space Force, the newest military service created by President Donald Trump in 2019.
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“Sen. Inhofe is still reviewing Mr. Kahl’s nomination closely and looks forward to hearing from him in the coming weeks. He does have serious concerns with some of the policy positions that Mr. Kahl has taken in the past,” a spokesperson for Inhofe confirmed in a statement to The Hill.
On Afghanistan: Reed also said he believes Biden will extend the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan beyond May, at least for a little bit.
“In the short run … I would expect some extension,” Reed said. “Even operationally, I think the military would make the case they need more time, even if they re coming out.”
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