Security Spending Primer

Security Spending Primer:
Getting Smart About The Pentagon Budget

 

This Primer is a “one-stop-shopping” resource and has two main goals:

• to provide comprehensive, easy-to-understand information on the complexity of the federal budget process; and
• to help build the capacity of people across the United States who want their voices and their priorities to be heard in the debate over federal spending in general and military spending in particular.

 

Even though federal spending and policy priorities have an enormous impact on individual lives, the budgeting and policy-making process remains mysterious to most Americans. NPP believes that good, concrete information strengthens social change work. In order to make our federal government more accountable, people – especially those most affected by social inequities – must play a central role in identifying the changes essential to creating better lives for themselves and future generations. They must have access to accurate information that supports effective strategies.  

 

The Primer answers the most frequently asked questions about, and supplies the most commonly requested information on, the Pentagon budget and U.S. military spending and is based on decades of experience in military budget analysis. 

 

It contains a series of two-page fact sheets on topics ranging from nuclear weapons to the employment impact of U.S. military and domestic spending choices to the military cost of securing energy. We designed these fact sheets to be read separately or as a group. We have also included a host of resources: organizational contact lists, sample NPP tools, resources lists, a glossary and more. 

 

 

 

Key findings in the primer include:   

• Total spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan passed $1 trillion in May 2010.
  
• Even without including current war allocations, U.S. military spending is at its highest level since World War II.  This takes into account the war-time budgets of Vietnam and Korea.
• Federal investment in the defense industry creates fewer jobs than in areas such as education and healthcare

This is an unprecedented period in our nation’s history. Two wars, staggering national debt, the economic crisis and an impending climate crisis make these extremely challenging times. At the same time, President Obama endeavors to respond to the sweeping mandate for change.

 

NPP is indebted to our collaborators in this project.

For more information:
Chris Hellman, Communication Liaison (Contact Chris) 

National Priorities Project 
www.nationalpriorities.org