Adding money to programs the Defense Department does not need detracts from programs it does need funding for, Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said, according to Defense News.
Carter told attendees of an event at the American Enterprise Institute Wednesday that Congress should not tamper with the Pentagon’s proposed budget, Kate Brannen reports.
The House has already approved its $643 billion version of the defense budget for fiscal year 2013, $8 billion more than amounts defined in the Budget Control Act and $3.7 billion more than President Obama’s proposal.
Brannen reports the Senate is set to debate its version of the National Defense Authorization Act in June or July.
Carter and additional Pentagon officials have told Congress that providing more funds for older weapons or Naval ships, for example, takes away from funding to buy new and more capable systems, the report notes.
