America can't afford single-payer, but there's always more money for war:
WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration plans to ask Congress for an additional $33 billion to fight unpopular wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, on top of a record request for $708 billion for the Defense Department next year, The Associated Press has learned.
Military commanders were briefed Tuesday on the Quadrennial Defense Review, which contains the most current version of U.S. military doctrine and on the administration's budget plans until 2015.
The four-year review outlines six key mission areas and spells out capabilities and goals the Pentagon wants to develop. The pilotless drones used for surveillance and attack missions in Afghanistan and Pakistan are a priority, with a goal of speeding up the purchase of new Reaper drones and expansion of Predator and Reaper drone flights through 2013.
The extra $33 billion in 2010 would mostly go toward the expansion of the war in Afghanistan.
It's obviously much more important to speed up purchase of Reaper drones and Predator drones than to fund expanded access to Medicaid or bail out underwater homeowners in a time of recession, high unemployment, and record deficits. Anyone with an ounce of patriotism should be able to see that.
The 2011 request is expected to top $700 billion for Defense for the first time.
How much does that work out to for each of the hundred or so al Qaeda members in Afghanistan? Maybe they should just drop those tons of bills directly on them instead of bothering with bombs and bullets.
Unpopular as the Afghanistan war is, no one expects there to be much trouble passing this massive military spending bill - Republicans will join "moderate" Democrats to pass it.
The Pentagon does project that war funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan will drop sharply after 2012, to a mere $50 billion a year, though overall "defense" spending will continue to rise:
The Pentagon projects that overall defense spending would be $616 billion in 2012; $632 billion in 2013; $648 billion in 2014; and $666 billion in 2015. Congress sets little store by such predictions, which typically have fallen short of actual requests and spending.
Are there any off-ramps for ever-increasing military spending?
Where will this madness end, and who will end it?