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May 20, 2008

Analysis of House Armed Services Committee Action on the FY2009 Defense Authorization Bill (HR 5658)

The House Armed Services Committee completed its markup of the Fiscal Year 2009 Defense Authorization bill (HR 5658) on May 15, 2008. The marked up bill recommends an overall authorization level of $601.4 billion, the amount requested by the administration.

May 15, 2008

Analysis of House May 2008 Iraq-Afghanistan Supplemental War Funding Package

If the new $168.4 billion Iraq war funding supplemental is enacted into law, Congress will have approved approximately $864 billion in DOD, State/USAID, and VA funding for the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since 2001. This would cement Iraq and Afghanistan's place as the second costliest conflict in U.S. history.

Apr 28, 2008

Center Applauds Request from Nine Senators to Cut Nuclear Reprocessing Funding

The Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation commended nine senators who urged funding cuts last week to the Department of Energy's efforts to both resume nuclear spent fuel reprocessing in the United States and to reuse nuclear weapons-usable material in domestic and foreign power reactors pursuant to the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership.

Apr 22, 2008

An Exercise in Futility: State Department 'Democracy Promotion' Funding for Iran

The State Department says the purpose of its so-called "democracy promotion" fund in Iran is to support programs that assist those inside Iran who desire basic civil liberties. On the surface this seems like a noble goal. However, the program is universally rejected by its intended recipients in Iran because it has undermined their work for democracy and reform.

Apr 17, 2008

Iraq War Senate Appropriations Hearing: Nussle's Nonsense Distorts the Record

On April 16, the Senate Appropriations Committee held a hearing on Iraq war funding with Office of Management and Budget Director Jim Nussle. Senators had every right to be upset: Nussle's testimony was riddled with misleading half-truths and outright inaccuracies.

Apr 15, 2008

Tying U.S. Defense Spending to GDP: Bad Logic, Bad Policy

Intelligent defense planning relies on requirements, tradeoffs, and a thorough evaluation of risk – not GDP – to determine need. Defense spending should remain subject to budgetary survival of the fittest.

Apr 15, 2008

Fiscal Year 2009 Federal Funding for Bioweapons Prevention and Defense

The Administration proposes $6.8 billion in regular funding on bioweapons prevention and defense activities in FY2009. This is an increase of approximately $340 million (5.2%) over the amount appropriated by Congress for FY2008.

Mar 26, 2008

Star Wars Turns 25 Years Old, but Effective and Capable Missile Defense Still Elusive

In this new analysis, Lt. Gen. Robert Gard (USA, ret.) and John Isaacs explain how 25 years and $120 billion dollars after President Ronald Reagan unveiled "Star Wars," U.S. national missile defense is still not effective or capable.

Mar 7, 2008

Downing a Sick Satellite, or Upping the Arms Race?

Did the United States use a failed satellite as cover for target practice to develop high-tech space weapons? Maybe Star Wars isn't just for the big screen after all.

Mar 5, 2008

Problems with Using the Supplemental Budget Process to Fund Ongoing Military Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan

Six and a half years after the United States initiated the so-called "Global War on Terror" (GWOT) by invading Afghanistan, the continued use of emergency supplemental budgeting to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is undermining America's ability to plan responsibly for present and future threats.

Mar 4, 2008

U.S. Arms Sales Agreements with the Middle East, 1999-2006

The United States is far and away the leader in arms sales agreements with the Middle East. This analysis shows why.

Mar 3, 2008

U.S. Arms Sales Agreements Worldwide, 1999-2006

The United States is far and away the leader in worldwide arms sales agreements. This analysis shows why.

Feb 26, 2008

Tying Defense Spending to GDP is Not the Answer

Tying U.S. defense spending to gross domestic product (GDP) is an inappropriate way to measure our national commitment to security. This letter to the editor outlines some of the basic flaws in the "defense spending as a percentage of GDP" argument.

Feb 25, 2008

U.S. Spending on Iraq and Afghanistan by Month, Week, Day, Hour, Minute, & Second

This chart shows how the United States spends $12.3 billion per month in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Feb 22, 2008

The FY 2009 Pentagon Spending Request - Global Military Spending

The U.S. military budget is the world's largest, and it continues to grow.

Feb 20, 2008

2008-2009 U.S. Defense Spending Highest Since WWII, Tops Vietnam and Korea

This graph compares U.S. defense spending in 2008 and 2009 to previous historical highs during World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and the Reagan-era buildup. All figures are in 2008 dollars.

Feb 20, 2008

U.S. Defense Spending, 2001-2009

This graph shows the growth in U.S. defense spending from 2001 to 2009.

Feb 6, 2008

Budget Dumps Iraq War in Next Administration's Lap

By adopting a piecemeal approach to the 2009 Iraq war budget, President Bush is thumbing his nose not just at Democrats but at Republicans as well. There is only one explanation for this move: Bush has decided to play serious hardball with the war budget in an attempt to dump responsibility for Iraq in the next president's lap.

Feb 6, 2008

As Substitute for Diplomacy, $20 Billion Saudi Arms Deal Falls Short

The sale of high-tech Joint Direct Attack Munitions weaponry to Saudi Arabia, unveiled in January 2008 as part of a larger $20 billion U.S. weapons package headed to the Middle East, is yet another example of the United States substituting arms sales for vigorous international diplomacy.

Feb 4, 2008

Iran Policy in the FY 2009 International Affairs Budget Request

On February 4, the U.S. Department of State posted a Summary and Highlights of the Fiscal Year 2009 International Affairs budget request (also known as Function 150). The summary reveals details regarding Iran-related funding.

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