Sunday, April 1, 2012

Defense secretary blasts budget cuts in Cal visit

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told U.S. Marines and sailors on Friday that Congress would be irresponsible if it doesn't act to prevent drastic military budget cuts.
In a visit to this amphibious assault ship off the Southern California coast, he also said Afghanistan is making progress against the Taliban but Iran remains a potential threat to the U.S.
A budget agreement reached last August calls for defense cuts of $487 billion over a decade, a reflection of the drawdown of two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the pressure to reduce the nation's deficit.
The failure of Congress to come up with at least $1.2 trillion in savings means automatic cuts of more than $1 trillion next January to defense and domestic programs.
Congress "did a stupid thing" in risking the $50 billion in across-the-board reductions that would kick in next January, Panetta told hundreds of Marines and sailors.
"What they essentially did was to put a gun to their heads and to the heads of the country," he said.

Read more: http://www.durangoherald.com/article/20120330/API/1203300583/Defense-secretary-blasts-budget-cuts-in-Cal-visit

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