Last Thursday, I was a guest on the Marc Steiner Show (WEAA-Baltimore) talking politics and specifically giving reaction to the President’s first State of the Union Address.
Overall, I think the President gave an ok speech, but it’s what I expect from him at this point. What I wasn’t ok with at all was the President’s proposal to freeze non-military government spending in an effort to address the national deficit. That will mean in essence that funding for schools, libraries, roads, and other important domestic initiatives will be halted while money for the nation’s ever-growing military machine will continue to flow unabated. In a time when African American unemployment is expected to reach a 25-year high (with Latinos disproportionately impacted as well), I find it ludicrous to continue uncritical funding of the Pentagon which has cost overruns of $296 billion dollars for its largest weapons programs.
I asked the question on the radio and I’ll continue to ask:
Why is it perceived to be forgone social wisdom to continue funding America’s War Machine even in times of economic strain?
Why is the halting of war funding off the table?
Why is money to support domestic initiatives viewed as DISCRETIONARY, while money for war is viewed as MANDATORY?
As CNN Money reports, “the President’s budget will actually call for billions more in spending for defense, diplomacy, and homeland security agencies.”
Both Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi and Republican Leader, John Boehner (R-OH) have signaled that military spending should be reviewed for excess and waste as well. Now whether they were just paying lip service to that idea or not only time will tell.
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For a president that attempts to echo Dr. King so much, he certainly must remember that King stated that militarism was one of the triple evils of society along with racism and materialism. Obama is credited with doing so much to excite and ignite progressives and peace activists in this country, but when you get beyond the speeches, you’ll find that many of his policies align with the most disheartening policies of his republican predecessor. Is he identical to Bush? No. But policy-wise, he’s not as far from Bush as many would like to believe.
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