Draft executive order shows how Trump wants to grow the U.S. military significantly

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: Washington Post

Draft executive order shows how Trump wants to grow the U.S. military significantly

By Dan Lamothe

January 27 at 10:25 AM

The Trump administration has drafted an executive order stating the president will significantly grow the U.S. military, spending money on everything from additional Special Operations forces to the modernization of the U.S. nuclear arsenal while cutting projects that are not considered the highest priority operations.

The three-page document, obtained by The Washington Post, calls for new Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to carry out a 30-day readiness review that will examine needs for the war against the Islamic State and other forms of Islamic terror, as well as training, maintenance, ammunition and infrastructure. The review, the draft said, also will examine how to carry out operations against unnamed near-peer competitors, a group which U.S. officials typically identify as China and Russia.

The draft order also calls for a second, parallel review in which the Pentagon and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) combine to craft a military readiness emergency budget amendment that would boost military spending this year, and for Mattis to revise the Pentagons tentative budget proposal for 2018 within 90 days. Mattis also is charged with creating a new national security strategy by next January that explicitly builds up the military. Special emphasis would be placed on modernizing nuclear weapons, strengthening missile defense, addressing delays in the maintenance of existing equipment, and overcoming shortfalls in areas where more people are needed, such as cyber warfare, personnel recovery and expeditionary naval forces, the order said. ... The document offers no details on which programs may be cut.
....

Trumps proposals for the military during his presidential campaign were drawn heavily from the conservative Heritage Foundation, and could cost between $55 billion* and $90 billion per year,** according to outside experts. The plan included adding tens of thousands of soldiers until the service reaches 540,000, expanding the Navys fleet to have at least 350 ships, adding about 100 Air Force fighter or attack jets until the service reaches 1,200, and increasing the number of Marine Corps infantry battalions from 24 to 36, which would include thousands of Marines.
....

Dan Lamothe covers national security for The Washington Post and anchors its military blog, Checkpoint. Follow @danlamothe***

* https://www.aei.org/publication/how-much-will-donald-trump-really-spend-on-defense/

** https://www.csis.org/analysis/trumps-defense-budget-place-your-bet

*** https://twitter.com/danlamothe

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2017/01/27/draft-executive-order-shows-how-trump-wants-to-grow-the-u-s-military-significantly/

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Draft Order Military* by Dan Lamothe** on Scribd

* https://www.scribd.com/document/337707193/Draft-Order-Military#from_embed

** https://www.scribd.com/user/239856177/Dan-Lamothe#from_embed

[Thrill]

1. Going to need it to fight for all the oil

He wants to steal

[fountainofyouth]

2. Nukes and missile defense?

Wonder how Pootie will like that. Let's see if it stays a priority after their first meeting.

[Mc Mike]

3. And enact massive tax cuts for the bloated plutocrats.

Then we'll have to try to balance the budget somewhere.

Wonder what the repuglinazis will cut?

[Stonepounder]

12. More IOU's to the Social Security trust fund, block grants to states for Medicare & Medicaid,

and import Tariffs. Oh yeah, tax cuts on the wealthy and the big corporations to kick-start trickle down.

[Mc Mike]

13. They'll have to 'zero out' all regulatory agencies, for 'budgetary' reasons, of course.

Any social safety net program will have to go, not because the repugs always hated them and had them targetted, just because we don't have the money and are being 'fiscally responsible'.

We'll have to eliminate non productive spending like the NEA.

The usual David Stockman Newt Gingrich style crap.

So spend trillions on bloating defense contractors' profits and feeding dRumpfie's piggie billionaires, then cut everything the repugs don't like to save a few million.

Then whine about the debt and deficit spending the next time the Dems are in charge.

[Cartoonist]

4. More

Because all of our aircraft carriers, submarines, tanks, fighter jets, and nuclear weapons weren't enough to defend us from 17 or so Saudi Arabians armed with boxcutters.

[bucolic_frolic]

5. When does he invade Mexico?

He's going to steal all our jobs back

Grab 'em by the pussy and drag them home

[cstanleytech]

7. No, its largely defensive in nature but without the infrastructure in place supplying it will

be next to impossible as to do all that they need things like good national interstates and railroads to transport the materials to the varies factories not to mention they then have to get the stuff to the varies bases and good luck with that with bridges collapsing.
Edit: Not to mention they are probably going to need to import some things like raw materials from other countries and getting into a trade war with those countries when you need stuff from them is stupid as fuck.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

9. "raw materials from other countries"

Like rare earths from China.

[cstanleytech]

16. Yup, they are one of the countries. nt

[EarthFirst]

8. There's a conference call/confidence check with Putin on Saturday... nt

[cstanleytech]

6. Anyone want to tell the idiots that its going to be hard to do that without a corresponding

infrastructure bill as well as the fact that if they gut the social services like they want that it will cause a massive depression in the economy?

[louis-t]

10. I think he just wants bigger parades.

Millions of soldiers ordered to march by him and salute. Every megalomaniacs dream.

[maxrandb]

11. Better Hurry

Considering Nicki Haley's statement after delivering her credentials to the UN, we're going to need 'em

BTW - we all know that the statement "while cutting projects that are not considered the highest priority operations" means things like enlisted pay and entitlements, VA Health Care, veteran training and support programs, retention bonuses and military pensions.

I served 30 years in the Navy. Retired in 2013. Served under Presidents from Reagan, to Clinton, to Bush, to Obama...but I would tell a young person today to RUN THE "EFF" AWAY from enlisting or reenlisting as fast as their feet could carry them

It hurts my heart, because I loved my time in and loved the Navy, but while I obviously didn't agree with the policies of all the CinC's that I served under, I never truly doubted their sanity.

In your guts...you know he's nuts

[Blue_Tires]

14. Maybe he'll save some money by having the Army build the wall?

LOL

[bucolic_frolic]

15. I think it's about buying cement from his contractor buddies

at Pentagon prices. Remember Reagan's $900 toilet seats?

[asiliveandbreathe]

17. This buffoon doesn't know how to read let alone how to write these dictates

Neocons been workin' OT -you betchachachacha - but, he sure knows how to profit...and take credit..this guy is nuts if he thinks we will just stand by..and this guy is nuts!!