With $500 billion in automatic defense cuts scheduled to go into effect on New Year’s Day, military spending — especially spending on liberal, tree-hugger priorities like alternative fuels — are making headlines.
But, as this anecdote in Michael Grunwald’s excellent new book about the Recovery Act The New New Deal reminds us, demagoguing on”wasteful spending” can be deceiving:
“… ‘hybrid vehicles for the military’ sounded goofy- ‘That’ll really scare Al Qaeda’… but the Pentagon was desperate for energy-saving solutions. Fuel was one of its top costs, and convoys to fetch fuel were getting soldiers killed in Iraq.” Of course, fans of The West Wing already learned that from Christian Slater!
The place for in-depth analysis, commentary and informed perspectives. Recommended
