Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsU.S. Defense (Military) Spending
http://www.motherjones.com/search/apachesolr_search/military%20spending%20chart
"....In fact, with projected cuts added in, the national security budget in fiscal 2013 will be nearly $1 trilliona staggering enough sum that its worth taking a walk through the maze of the national security budget to see just where that moneys lodged.
If youve heard a number for how much the United States spends on the military, its probably in the neighborhood of $530 billion. Thats the Pentagons base budget for fiscal 2013, and represents a 2.5 percent cut from 2012. But that $530 billion is merely the beginning of what the United States spends on national security. Lets dig a little deeper.
The Pentagons base budget doesnt include war funding, which in recent years has been well over $100 billion. With US troops withdrawn from Iraq and troop levels falling in Afghanistan, you might think that war funding would be plummeting as well. In fact, it will drop to a mere $88 billion in fiscal 2013. By way of comparison, the federal government will spend around $64 billion on education that same year.....
snip
....The US military maintains an arsenal of nuclear weapons. You might assume that weve already accounted for nukes in the Pentagons $530 billion base budget. But youd be wrong. Funding for nuclear weapons falls under the Department of Energy (DOE), so its a number you rarely hear. In fiscal 2013, well be spending $11.5 billion on weapons and related programs at the DOE. And disposal of nuclear waste is expensive, so add another $6.4 billion for weapons cleanup.
Now, were at $636 billion and counting.
How about homeland security? Weve got to figure that in, too. Theres the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which will run taxpayers $35.5 billion for its national security activities in fiscal 2013. But theres funding for homeland security squirreled away in just about every other federal agency as well. Think, for example, about programs to secure the food supply, funded through the US Department of Agriculture. So add another $13.5 billion for homeland security at federal agencies other than DHS.
That brings our total to $685 billion.
Then theres the international affairs budget, another obscure corner of the federal budget that just happens to be jammed with national security funds. For fiscal 2013, $8 billion in additional war funding for Iraq and Afghanistan is hidden away there. Theres also $14 billion for whats called international security assistancethats part of the weapons and training Washington offers foreign militaries around the world. Plus theres $2 billion for peacekeeping operations, money US taxpayers send overseas to help fund military operations handled by international organizations and our allies.....
snip
....That brings our grand total to an astonishing $931 billion.
And this will turn out to be a conservative figure. We wont spend less than that, but among other things, it doesnt include the interest were paying on money we borrowed to fund past military operations; nor does it include portions of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration that are dedicated to national security....."
snip
http://www.thenation.com/article/168002/how-much-does-washington-spend-defense
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
0 replies, 529 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (2)
ReplyReply to this post