Benefits of a Slimmer Pentagon.

The article looks at the debate over possible cuts to the U.S. Department of Defense budget. It analyzes the level of U.S. military spending as of 2012 and its level if proposed budget cuts were implemented relative to the overall size of the U.S. economy and places those figures in historical context. It notes that some argue against cuts in U.S. defense spending out of concern for job losses. In response, the authors present data showing that a given amount of government spending in areas such as education or health care creates more jobs than the same sum spent on defense. The role of the Defense Department in funding technological research and development (R&D) is also discussed.