House Resolution #4: Reduce Military Spending by 6/7ths

By Jeremy Cloward

Reduce current military spending from $690 billion to $100 billion

WHY IT IS NEEDED: For fiscal year 2009 the United States government will spend some $690 billion dollars on the military. Some argue that when funds allocated for space defense, military aid, interest on past military spending, as well as benefits and care for our veterans are included, the total dollar amount is nearly $1 trillion dollars + a full one third of our entire national budget. However, if we are to use only the number that the federal government officially reports - $690 billion dollars + then the United States spends more money on its military than all other 193 countries combined. China is second in defense spending with a published military budget of $59 billion dollars per year. In addition, the US maintains more than 750 military bases and garrisons around the world on every continent except for Antarctica, including some 32 military bases and garrisons on the small Japanese island of Okinawa, alone. This has led some to conclude that the United States has created a military empire that literally spans the globe. Unfortunately, the result of the majority of our military actions around the world + including the covert operations of the $30 billion dollar a year Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) + has created hostility toward the United States and its citizens. It is time to draw back our military to a reasonable size and transfer the majority of its funding to more constructive programs.

HOW IT WILL BE DONE: We propose reducing military spending by approximately sixth sevenths + from $690 billion dollars per year to $100 billion dollars per year. Even with our military budget reduced to $100 billion dollars we will still outspend second place China by more than $40 billion dollars. Included in the reduction of the military budget will be the decommissioning of all 5,000 plus US nuclear weapons as well as the abolishment of the CIA. Nuclear weapons, in combination with other global problems such as HIV/AIDS, poverty, and global warming have the potential to put an end to our species. Thus, it is time to put an end to at least one part of that threat which we will do by decommissioning the US nuclear arsenal. On the other hand, the Central Intelligence Agency has routinely been involved in undermining popular democratic movements and governments abroad, e.g. Iran (1954), Chile (1973), Cuba (1959-present), etc. It is an organization that is widely disliked abroad for its covert activities which jeopardize the safety of the American people as well as many people throughout the world with its destructive, often undemocratic, and at times, illegal behavior. Accordingly, its funding will be eliminated.