Max Boot has written an article for the January 17th issue of the Weekly Standard about the proposed reductions in military spending.  Mr. Boot points out that in the past demobilization has cost us dearly. At present the Army has 566,045 active-duty soldiers.  In 2001 the number was 478,918, down from 710,821 in 1991 (at the end of the cold war). 

Mr. Boot states:

“That (current number of troops) is still too small–a force that size has too little “dwell time” at home and places too much stress on soldiers. It also imposes constraints, helping to curtail the size of the force we send to Afghanistan even though more troops could get the job done with less risk.”

The defense budget accounts for less than 20 percent of federal spending.  The article points out that there have been serious cuts in weapons systems also.  As China is developing weapons to secure its place in the world, we are stepping down from our place.  This is not a good thing.  The military budget probably does have room for cuts, but they need to be carefully considered, keeping in mind that we live in a dangerous world where we are fighting two wars.  The war on terror may not end when we finally withdraw from Afghanistan.  To assume that we can cut troops and weapons now is a dangerous assumption.