We heard time and again that the Armed Forces has already lost a disproportionate share of its best young officers and non-commissioned officers. On top of these people problems, despite high readiness spending and herculean efforts in the field, the readiness of much our Reagan-era equipment stock has declined. Inadequate funding for modernization over the last decade will ensure that today's readiness problems are passed on to the next President. Most experts believe that the modernization accounts require at least an additional 20 billion dollars per year. The costs of new weapons systems, deferred maintenance, and national missile defense will hit the Armed Forces like a tidal wave.
Many experts see drastic personnel reductions as the only way to keep it afloat.
Barring an unlikely, radical change in strategy, the next president in all likelihood will have to spend more on personnel, readiness, and modernization. This will not be possible within current budget levels. Neither new weapons technologies nor management efficiencies will alleviate the need for more spending. The real choice is more money, or more rust along with lower morale. In addition to spending more money, curing what ails the military will require a set of tough decisions.