Robert Gates: “the worst thing in the world would be what was done in the 1970s and 1990s . . . give everybody in the military a same…”

“the worst thing in the world would be what was done in the 1970s and 1990s . . . give everybody in the military a same percentage cut across the board. That's the way you hollow out the military. That's the way you don't have enough ammunition to use at firing ranges, you don't have enough money for exercising or training, you don't have enough money for tank miles or steaming days or flight hours . . . if we have to reduce the size of the military in some way, I want the level of excellence when we're done to be at the same standard it is today.”