Political Quotes

“My amendment would reduce research and development spending at the Department of Defense by 10 percent. First inclination, we all know research and development is a good thing, but not when it begets wasteful spending. The continuing resolution before us makes deep cuts in non-defense discretionary spending. If we are truly serious about reducing our long-term deficits, we must look at the whole picture--and that picture includes defense. Non-defense discretionary comprises approximately 15 percent of Federal spending. Meanwhile, defense spending comprises 20 percent of Federal spending. We cannot ignore one-fifth of the budget. As Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has said, 'Our national debt is our biggest national security threat.' My amendment would cut a modest 10 percent from the Department of Defense's research and development budget. DOD's R&D spending has experienced more spending growth since 2001 than any other major DOD appropriation category. DOD's research, development, testing and evaluation budget has increased 63 percent over the last 10 years, rising from $49.2 billion in FY 2001 to $80.2 billion in FY 2010. This is 33 percent more than the Cold War peak in real terms, even though today we face no traditional adversary comparable to the Soviet Union. Further, in FY 2009, R&D spending exceeded China's entire defense budget, the world's second largest, by $10.5 billion.”