Waste Land.

UNITED States armed forces appropriations & expenditures; APPROPRIATIONS & expenditures of the United States Dept. of Defense; GATES, Robert Michael, 1943-; MILITARY spending; MILITARY policy; BUDGET laws; GOVERNMENT spending policy

The article discusses the increasing U.S. defense budget and criticizes U.S. Department of Defense policies that have caused the budget to swell to more than $700 billion. The author points to spending on soldiers as a primary reason for the high budget with high salaries, benefits, and health care costs as factors. The Pentagon's procurement process and spending for unnecessary equipment such as the F-22 fighter jet, the B-2 bomber, and nuclear submarines are pointed to as other reasons. The efforts of U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates to curtail this spending are described.