Putting Some Intelligence Into Military Spending

A new report warns Congress that the U.S. could struggle to win, or might even lose, a war against China or Russia, because America’s military has “failed to keep pace with changing security challenges.” Why? One reason, according to the bipartisan National Defense Strategy Commission, is that military planners have to deal with a budget that shifts unpredictably from one year to the next.

The 2020 budget, the next one up for consideration, is a good example. President Donald Trump has said he wants to subtract $33 billion from the $733 billion now on the table. After significant increases in 2018 and 2019, the Pentagon had expected the same for 2020. Facing a possible cut instead, it’s now preparing two different projected budgets: one that absorbs the president’s reduction and another that ignores it.