Military spending and wages 1970-2004... help please??

[politicat]

I'm having a terrible google day... somedays you're the master, some days, you're the slave, ya know?

I want to put together a flyer for my sister at Camp LeJeune to give to other military wives about spending, benefits and wages under Dems versus Rs since 1970. Growing up military, I know that things got better under Big Dawg, but I don't remember how much, only that it was the first COLA we'd had in FOREVER....

I also recall that Dad was gone a lot more under Raygun and Poppa Bush. That leads me to reason that he may have been making more in dollars, but it was hazard pay of some sort.

If you know of any resources on salary spending for the military, I'd like to have them.

I'll post the camera ready to my website when its done.

Pcat

[Blue Wally]

1. Lets see.........

Under Eisenhower there were two pay raises (54 and 58). In 1963 under JFK we got a pretty big jump (I went from $291 to $375 a month). After 1963, it was pretty much "cost of living" and "comparability" increases until inflation got out of hand under Ford and Carter, then they "capped" the pay raises to balance the budget.

The president usually had little say in the size of the military pay increase. Congress (primarily the House) worked it as a part of the military budget. We had a Democratic House all of the time that I was in the military (1961-1989). I can't really complain about the pay. It got a lot better the longer I stayed (Hell, I could live on what it was in 1961 by being careful).

[crickets]

2. I think I may be having a good Google day

Try these links:

U.S. Military Spending, 1946–2004 (billions of 2002 dollars)
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0904490.html

Federal Budget Outlays for Defense Functions: 1980 to 2002
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0883084.html

Sorry I didn't have as much luck finding specific historical wage info, but this is a great link about W's policies that you might find interesting-

Claim vs. Fact: Treatment of Troops at a Time of War
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/apps/s/custom.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=21971