Can The U.S. Be A Superpower AND A Welfare State? (A Commentary)

The Gates Farewell Warning -- Wall Street Journal

America can be a superpower or a welfare state, but not both.

Robert Gates, who steps down next month after four-plus years at the Pentagon, is making his retirement lap a tutorial on America's defense spending and security needs. His message is welcome, especially on Memorial Day, and even if he couldn't always heed it in his time as Secretary of Defense.

In a series of farewell speeches, Mr. Gates has warned against cuts to weapon programs and troop levels that would make America vulnerable in "a complex and unpredictable security environment," as he said Sunday at Notre Dame. On Tuesday at the American Enterprise Institute, Mr. Gates noted that the U.S. went on "a procurement holiday" in the 1990s, when the Clinton Administration decided to cash in the Cold War peace dividend. The past decade showed that history (and war) didn't end in 1989.

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My Comment: If history is any indication, politicians are more interested in buying votes with government monies rather than spending it on U.S. defense programs and operations. America cannot be a superpower AND a welfare state at the same time .... a balancing act that is right now failing as trillion dollar deficits become the norm rather than the exception for the U.S. Treasury. What is my prediction .... the trend is now towards a welfare state .... a goal that in itself will fail as those who contribute to such a system (through their tax dollars) will eventually rebel and refuse to contribute to a system that they will now perceive as unfair.