Gates Planning Major Changes In Programs, Defense Budget

[SoCalDem]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/03/AR2009040304080.html

Proposal Said to Move Focus To Counterinsurgency Efforts

By R. Jeffrey Smith and Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writers

Saturday, April 4, 2009; Page A01

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is expected to announce on Monday the restructuring of several dozen major defense programs as part of the Obama administration's bid to shift military spending from preparations for large-scale war against traditional rivals to the counterinsurgency programs that Gates and others consider likely to dominate U.S. conflicts in coming decades.

Gates's aides say his plan would boost spending for some programs and take large whacks at others, including some with powerful constituencies on Capitol Hill and among influential contractors, making his announcement more of an opening bid than a decisive end to weeks of sometimes acrimonious internal Pentagon debate.

Among the programs expected to be heavily cut is the Army's Future Combat Systems, a network of vehicles linked by high-tech communications that has been plagued by technical troubles and delays; with a price tag exceeding $150 billion, it is now one of the most costly military efforts.


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