John Bolton Sounds Alarm for Defense on Debt Ceiling Negotiations

Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton just released the following statement, highlighting the danger defense spending faces in the budget deficit negotiations:

Every indication is that the debt-ceiling negotiations are leaving the defense budget in grave jeopardy.  By exposing critical defense programs to disproportionate cuts as part of the “trigger mechanism,” there is a clear risk that key defense programs will be hollowed out.

While the trigger mechanism comes into play only if the Congressional negotiators fail to reach agreement on the second phase of spending cuts, it verges on catastrophe to take such a national security risk.

Defense has already taken hugely disproportionate cuts under President Obama, and there is simply no basis for expanding those cuts further.  Republican negotiators must hold the line, since the Obama Administration plainly will not.

John R. Bolton, July 31, 2011