Files
Download Full Text (331 KB)
Description
In 2010, Admiral Mike Mullen, then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, quipped that “the most significant threat to our national security is our debt.” At the time, many thought he was out of line with this bold but prescient statement. Currently, most analysts take for granted that drastic action is needed to fix the deep hole that spending and deficit financing have dug in the U.S. treasury. The scale of debt limits the U.S. government from sustaining key functions such as income security and health care, as well as national security. Unfortunately, at the same time, rising competitors and revanchist regimes such as China and Russia are challenging national interests in all regions. This may seem to present a straight- forward dilemma between prosperity or security, but that’s a false choice. If the security order falls apart and the Axis of Upheaval dominates Eurasia, the U.S. will have no prosperity.
Publication Date
2025
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5038/EGRS8508
Recommended Citation
Hoffman, Frank, "Matching Ends with Means: Tomorrow’s Defense Budget" (2025). GNSI Publications. 6.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/gnsi_publications/6
