AN APPROPRIATE TARGET?

In his Aug. 31 speech announcing the end of "combat operations" in Iraq, President Obama argued that the military efforts the nation has made since 9/11 had "shortchanged investments in our own people and contributed to record deficits." As Bob Woodward's new book "Obama's Wars" makes plain, a similar mentality pervaded the president's Afghanistan strategy: His response to the need for a long-term American military presence was, "I am not spending a trillion dollars!"

It is encouraging to see Mr. Obama concerned about deficits and debt. But his concern with the military is largely misplaced. It is neither the true source of our fiscal woes, nor an appropriate target for indiscriminate budget-slashing in a still-dangerous world.

Consider the actual dollars. According to the Congressional Budget Office's most recent projections, the president's proposed budget for 2011 will add $10 trillion in debt over the next decade. By 2020, the federal government will owe $20 trillion, or $170,000 per American household. read on---