WASHINGTON'S ILLUSIONS – AT 8:54 A.M. ET:  Normally, when discussing our defense needs, we'd assume that those living in a world of illusions are on the leftist fringe of the Democratic Party.  Sadly, some Republicans have begun to drink the Kool-Aid.   We not only are fighting a war against terror, we're facing a rising, and disciplined military force in China.  Have a nice day.  From The Wall Street Journal:

In Washington the season of budget cuts is in full blossom. Unfortunately, leaders of both political parties may soon agree to further slash the defense budget. Yet this comes as the military is fighting an ongoing war against jihadi terrorists while also confronting a China that is using its growing military power more aggressively. The prescription should be more, not less, U.S. military power. It is easy to see how cuts will save today, but difficult to assess how much cuts will cost tomorrow. In Asia, the price will be unacceptably high.

China's military rise is changing the balance of power in its neighborhood. While Washington debates how to cut America's military, China continues to spend generously on defense. Last year, the Obama administration took the first steps in a $400 billion defense spending cut, ending several crucial programs. The White House has now asked for another $400 billion in cuts. China, meanwhile, has averaged 10% annual spending increases for more than 20 years. As former Secretary of Defense Harold Brown once said of the Soviets, "When we build, they build; when we cut, they build."

Beijing has the most ambitious missile program in the world—including an anti-ship ballistic missile that threatens U.S. aircraft carriers. China is also investing heavily in submarines and surface ships; stealthy fighter aircraft; and space and cyber-warfare capabilities. The equation budget cutters should ponder is that China's aggressive build-up plus American defense cuts equals Asian instability.

That instability could have far-reaching consequences. America's military has ensured peace and stability in the region, made the seas safe for trade and transit, provided Asians with the political space to prosper, and guaranteed that no hostile power would again use the Pacific as an avenue of approach for an attack on American soil.

COMMENT:  Well written and well argued.  It's been pointed out that America has cut its defense after every war in the 20th century, and in each case later regretted it.

One of the sillier arguments for cutting defense is that we can no longer "afford" our current level of defense spending.  That is nonsense.  It's like saying we can't afford a life-saving operation.  We find a way.  And, in fact, defense spending is one of the most effective economic stimulants that we have.  Had Obama devoted more of the so-called "stimulus" to defense spending, rather than to pet projects of well-connected Democrats, we could have created thousands of factory jobs, as assembly lines would start to hum, building equipment that the military needs. 

This country, above all others, learned the lesson of the 1930s.  Once the immediate demand for disarmament after World War II was out of our system, we started building again, formed NATO, and resisted Communist aggression in Korea.  Indeed, at one time the Democratic Party accused Republicans of not being zealous enough about defense...which tells you how far down the Democrats have come. 

But we're now forgetting those lessons, in part because they're no longer taught.  We won't pay the price, but our children will.

July 6, 2011