On Thursday, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta confirmed our fears when he released details on just how significant the defense cuts will be regarding the soon to be released FY2013 President’s budget.

The Pentagon’s FY2013 base budget request of $525 billion is a $6 billion dollar reduction compared to that of the FY2012 base budget, but the impact over the next five years reduces defense spending by $259 billion.

The impact of the cuts to military members and retirees runs deep.

The Pentagon’s reduction plan includes significant cuts to Army and Marine Corps end strength. The Army end strength will be cut by 80K from their peak of 570K leaving the Army with 490K. Marine Corps end strength will be reduced by 20K resulting in a final end strength of 182K.

Under the plan active duty pay raises will keep pace with private sector pay growth in 2013 and 2014, but starting 2015, military pay raises will be “limited” below that of private sector growth. Exactly how limited remains to be seen.

Retiree health care benefits takes a significant hit – most affected will be working age retirees under age 65. DoD’s proposed changes include:

1.    New enrollment fees and additional fee increases for retirees under age 65 enrolled in TRICARE by creating a “tiered” approach based on retired rank. This means-testing will require senior grade retirees to pay more for their health care than junior retirees;

2.    An enrollment fee for TRICARE for Life beneficiaries 65 and older; and,

3.    Additional increases in pharmacy co-pays with the goal of increasing the use of generics and the mail order pharmacy.

The “tiered” approach to health care fees would make military retirees the only group of government retirees subject to healthcare means-testing. This is a concept we’ve fought ardently because it flies in the face of logic for a military service incentive – basically, the longer and more successfully you serve, the less benefit you earn.

The proposal doesn’t include any changes to retirement pay, but DoD will ask Congress to establish a BRAC-like commission with authority to conduct a review of the military retirement system. DoD reiterated that any changes resulting from the study would only affect future recruits.

Finally, as part of the Pentagon’s plan, the President will request from Congress another round of Base Realignment and Closures in order to reduce excess infrastructure. More base closures would lead to fewer quality of life programs and services such as exchanges, commissaries, and Military Treatment Facilities and clinics.

The Pentagon’s plan is far from final…it still needs to go through the various committees in both chambers in Congress, but in the current budget environment we definitely have our work cut out for us.

Now we have to wait for details on exactly how steep the health care fee hikes will be. These should emerge once the President releases his budget on February 13.

This proposal will set our legislative agenda for the foreseeable future. Please send your legislators a MOAA-suggested message and ask them to oppose these dramatic cuts.

By Liberty Counsel

Read our News Release for more details.

Defending God’s Design for Marriage and Family

Have you ever wondered… “What can I do to help those involved in homosexuality?” “How extensive is the culture war over marriage and family?” “What are they exposing our children to in schools?” Or, perhaps… “Why should I even care?” This book answers those questions and more!

By Larry Sessions

The first step in the treatment of an illness is to overcome denial.

We are in denial that we are broke financially and can no longer defend the world and provide for everyone’s desires. You read the editorial page and it is clear that many citizens may be from another planet. Maybe they are from Mars.

Our debt is unpayable and our current level of spending is unsustainable. A family’s share (three people) of the national debt is $145,000. Can you make the payment? All the irresponsible promises made by politicians to get elected can not be kept.

Is the independent spirit and risk-taking that made us great gone? Are we happy to settle for a lower standard of living doled out by the government? Taking another person’s money works only as long as the other person has money. Is this socialist model one we really want to copy?

The only reason our debt has not already been called is because the dollar is reserve currency for the world. Many in the world are now saying the dollar is worthless and a new reserve currency is needed. When and if this happens our interest on the debt will soar and 41 percent of our revenue now being paid as interest will seem like a bargain.

Let’s blame it all on the Tea Party since they are the ones who bring this nasty fact out in the open and making us so uncomfortable.

Larry Sessions is a retired professional engineer who is interested in the country’s future and very concerned about the direction in which we are currently headed.

Holder Adopts “Sergeant Shultze Defense” on Fast & Furious — Continues to claim ignorance that DoJ was helping send guns to Mexico

Appropriately, it’s Groundhog Day.

Because Attorney General Eric Holder has just testified that he spent another year hiding in a hole, oblivious to what was going on in his department or even what was in his inbox.

In testimony before Darrell Issa’s Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Holder’s defense was — in the words of one DEMOCRAT — the “Sergeant Schultz defense”: “I know nooothing!”

This, notwithstanding the fact that there were no fewer than seven memoranda sent to Holder (as early as July, 2010) briefing him on the Fast and Furious Operation, and the fact that his department was intentionally allowing guns to go across the border to Mexican drug cartels.

Those guns have already resulted in the deaths of over 300 Mexican nationals, in addition to U.S. Border Agent Brian Terry.

Yet, Holder smugly asserted that he didn’t have time to read memoranda forwarded to him by his subordinates detailing criminal conduct by his department under his watch. (Never mind Holder’s assertion today that his management style was one that is “hands on.”)

Which leads to this question: Could a hedge fund manager escape culpability by arguing that he didn’t read letters from his subordinates or attorneys warning him of criminal misconduct?

And another thing: What was Eric Holder doing that was so important that the deaths of 300 people didn’t warrant any of his “precious” time?

Let Holder explain to the families of the dead that their lives were trivial because he was so busy promulgating illegal regulations governing multiple gun sales reporting, unlawfully banning shotgun importation, and unconstitutionally justifying non-recess recess appointments.

Holder protested that questioners were “disrespecting” his office. But Holder has dragged his office and his department into the cesspool. The proper response to him is: “Disrespect? What about 300 murdered Mexicans?” It is time for him to go.

ACTION: Click here to contact your senators and representative. Demand that they call for Holder’s resignation.