Tea partiers say defense in mix for budget cuts

http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/tea-partiers-say-defense-in-mix-for-budget-cuts-1062029.html

Back home, tea partiers clamoring for the debt-ridden government to slash spending say nothing should be off limits. Tea party-backed lawmakers echo that argument, and they're not exempting the military's multibillion-dollar budget in a time of war.

House Republican leaders specifically exempted defense, homeland security and veterans' programs from spending cuts in their party's "Pledge to America" campaign manifesto last fall. But the House's new majority leader, Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., has said defense programs could join others on the cutting board.

"The widely held sentiment among Tea Party Patriot members is that every item in the budget, including military spending and foreign aid, must be on the table," said Mark Meckler, co-founder of the Tea Party Patriots. "It is time to get serious about preserving the country for our posterity. The mentality that certain programs are 'off the table' must be taken off the table."

"Everything is ultimately on the table," said Rep. Jon Runyan of New Jersey, a freshman Republican and a tea party favorite. ... Runyan expects a committee fight over Gates' proposal to cancel a $14 billion program to develop the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle for the Marines and use that money to buy additional ships, F-18 jets and new electronic jammers. Already, several members of the panel, including the chairman, Rep. Buck McKeon, R-Calif., have signaled they will challenge Gates' move.

Interesting times in the repub party. Something tells me the corporate wing of the party will come out on top.

It's all become a prolonged WTF moment.

Very difficult to steer.

Suddenly, the Tea party is tacking in our direction. I say go for it. Now that the Republicans have unleashed the crackpots, it will be difficult to convince them that any federal spending is a good thing.

for starters.

How about cutting the deep-water trough that is the revenue stream of the MIC?

For all their talk, these 'patriots' love the police state.

Judging by the stuff I've read, a lot of Tea Party folks would be happy to see the DHS go.

I agree with them on this one. $14 billion for a piece of junk that doesn't work and the military doesn't even want? Get rid of it. Ditto for the equally useless "missile defense" program.

If they do any cutting, it will be to privatize even more of the military - at 10x the cost.