The Hill News

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Boeing Corporation Vice-President James Albaugh, and House Armed Services Committee Chair Howard P. “Buck” McKeon have something in common: they are all arguing that scaling back the Pentagon’s spending plans will cost large numbers of jobs. Specifically, they suggest that if the budget “super committee” fails and automatic cuts in defense spending are triggered, unemployment could rise by as much as one percent.

Secretary Panetta has been making these claims in calls to members of Congress, and McKeon’s committee staff has made similar assertions in a memo whose findings will be submitted to the super committee.

These claims are misleading and irresponsible. They inject an economic fear factor into the defense budget debate that stands in the way of clear thinking about what level of spending is needed to protect the country and our interests.

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