Covered at Reason 24/7: Hagel Walks Back Defense Budget Doom Talk
America’s incredibly large defense budget makes any claim that the tiny sequestration cuts present a threat to the nation’s security look silly. Now that efforts to panic us all have failed to prevent sequestration from happening, spanking new Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel’s first press conference was all about muzzling his predecessor’s apocalyptic shriekings.
The Associated Press reports:
The Pentagon will not let an impending $46 billion in budget cuts erode U.S. military power, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Friday. He said the cuts will "cause pain" but insisted that they can be managed without hurting national security.
At his first news conference since taking over for Leon Panetta as Pentagon chief, Hagel struck a more relaxed tone about the budget reductions, which are part of $85 billion in government-wide spending cuts that were taking effect Friday at midnight.
Whereas Panetta had warned of "catastrophic" effects that could reduce America to the status of a "second-rate" military power, Hagel said he believed the budget crisis can be managed in ways that do not put U.S. national security in jeopardy.
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"Now that efforts to panic us all have failed to prevent sequestration from happening, spanking new Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel’s first press conference was all about muzzling his predecessor’s apocalyptic shriekings."
You can't talk people into a recession, but you can nudge them in that direction.
And that's a really stupid thing to do. Not that something being stupid has ever slowed down the Obama Administration.
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As a choice, I wouldn't say Hagel was a good one. However, it seems he isn't as nuts as you would expect of the Obama administration. Or maybe he is, and we just haven't seen it yet. Time will tell.
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Doom... doom... DOOM!!!!
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Hope,change, and DOOM.
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Everyone — from exporters that need to quickly ship their products by truck, to tourists planning to drive or fly for a vacation getaway in the U.S. —will be affected.
Jayson Myers, president of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, said in an interview that his association expects the delays will be longest at the Canada-U.S. land border crossings. “What we’re hearing is that we could be facing four or five-hour delays at the border.” -
Miguel Bloombito @ElBloombito
Sequéster? Yo hardlyo even que kñow her! -
What's this about spanking the new Secretary of Defense?
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The Pentagon will not let an impending $46 billion in budget cuts erode U.S. military power
they're clinging to the lie, aren't they
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What cuts?
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And hilarity ensues.
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needz moar yakety sax
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Syrian Rebel Leader says fuck yo aid give us guns biotches
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Many Bothans died giving this information.
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But I was all ready to surrender to the Chinese/random Yellow horde/Muslim fanatics/Ga-dam-Mongoians. I even got out my clean sheets.
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