Faithful Intercepts readers no doubt are familiar with the dire predictions from civilian and uniformed Pentagon leaders about what will become of the U.S. military and American national security if all of sequestration’s $500 billion, decade-spanning cuts are enacted. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos on Feb. 12 told a congressional panel it would be “ruinous” — though even some pro-military lawmakers and experts are skeptical about such gloomy claims.

When it came to convincing the political system to avoid the sequestration cuts, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey recently admitted to a congressional panel that Pentagon leaders misplayed their hand. Well, Intercepts readers better hope Pentagon brass made a list of what went wrong — you know, ran what military types often (too often?) call a “lessons-learned drill.”

That’s because, according to one nonpartisan Washington think tank, deeper federal spending cuts will be needed to further pare the federal deficit and truly right the American fiscal ship. And, remember, even with sequestration the Pentagon’s baseline budget is projected to approach $600 billion per year later this decade. That’s one GIANT target. As we’ve all learned, when Washington takes on the difficult task that is deficit reduction, the GIANT targets are the easiest ones to hit. More