“We are in an impossible situation in Congress,” Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.) said Wednesday during AFA’s Air and Space Conference in Washington. Over the past five years defense spending has increased greatly, but now it’s about to hit a ceiling, said Weldon. He explained that actual defense spending has decreased since John F. Kennedy’s Presidency, when 52 cents of every federal budget dollar was devoted to defense. In 2000, defense accounted for only 15 cents of every dollar. Weldon said the nation must meet the challenges of the future in the face of serious budget constraints, and America’s first challenge is to be realistic about the situation. The nation needs to understand that even with competing programs, “politics stops where national security begins,” he said, adding that the constitution mentions national security six times. More resources are needed, but for now, we have to “work smarter with current resources,” Weldon concluded.
Amid NATO’s continued push to ramp up air defenses in Eastern Europe, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall swung by seven allied countries to boost relations last week, including those on Russia’s and Ukraine’s doorstep.