[CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS ACTION FUND]
Military Spending Can Grow the Nation's Economy By Lawrence J. Korb, Laura Conley, Sean Duggan, Matthew Merighi
Read more and download the memo here <http://www.americanprogressaction.org/issues/2009/02/military_spending_memo.html
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These times of great economic challenge present the administration and the country with opportunities to spend on much-needed government projects that will enhance our national interests while stimulating the economy. The massive defense budget, among other factors, makes the Department of Defense an ideal government agency to play a role in economic recovery. When policymakers consider how to jumpstart the economy, they should focus on the following three areas in the defense budget:
Combat rising unemployment by increasing the size of the ground forces to projected levels as quickly as possible
Accelerate the spending of funds already authorized for military construction and authorize an additional $25 billion in the FY 2010 budget for construction projects that will be needed in the next five years
Accelerate Army and Marine Corps equipment reset.
These and other recommendations would cost $106 billion and would create approximately 1 million jobs. The Department of Defense should spend funds that would have to be spent eventually on people, projects, and reset that would enhance our overall security while enabling the economy to recover. While this would mean a temporary increase in the overall defense outlays for FY 2010 and FY 2011, it would also mean that in 2012 and 2013, defense spending on items such as military construction would tail off sharply when the economy should be back to its normal level of activity.