Ron Paul wants to build more bases in the U.S.

[girl gone mad]

35. I don't have much of an opinion on the matter, to be frank.

I do think these two politicians sound like they are not so far apart. I googled for specifics after you posted "the President's plan to shrink the size of the military" and the language of the Washington Post article does sound reminiscent of the Ron Paul rhetoric you were criticizing in the thread I mentioned above.

The U.S. military will steadily shrink the Army and Marine Corps, reduce forces in Europe and probably make further cuts to the nation’s nuclear arsenal, the Obama administration said Thursday in a preview of how it intends to reshape the armed forces after a decade of war.

The downsizing of the Pentagon, prompted by the country’s dire fiscal problems, means that the military will depend more on coalitions with allies and avoid the large-scale counterinsurgency and nation-building operations that have marked the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

(snip)

The strategy review was unveiled by President Obama in a rare visit to the Pentagon, where he was flanked by Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, the Joint Chiefs and other officials who sought to project an image of undiminished military power even as they gird for an era of austerity that will necessitate a more restrained use of military force and more modest foreign policy goals.


Obama and Pentagon leaders said their new military strategy, contained in an eight-page document, will guide wrenching decisions on defense cutbacks. Details will be made public in the next few weeks as the White House finalizes its proposed federal budget for the next fiscal year.

No more nation-building, focus on domestic affairs, cut spending while maintaining our strategic advantage. Obama even says "I firmly believe, and I think the American people understand, that we can keep our military strong and our nation secure with a defense budget that continues to be larger than roughly the next 10 countries combined,” which you have to admit could have come right out of Paul's mouth.

Your quote from one of the threads you linked to: "...he hasn't been railing against "wasteful spending," he has been attacking the MIC. He's pushing propaganda."

Is it propaganda when Obama says it, too? Is Obama attacking the MIC, in your view? And why is that a bad thing?