Free Ride in the Free Market

…But one big question…is whether the Pentagon and Congress have the desire, and will, to kill weapons programs where hundreds of billions of dollars - as well as the careers of powerful generals and admirals - are invested.

…Mr. Rumsfeld has tried to kill some weapons systems he saw as Cold War anachronisms and to push a military modernization plan. But his efforts were thwarted by what Washington calls the Iron Triangle of Congress, the uniformed military command and military contractors.

…The Pentagon currently has $1.3 trillion of weapons program in its portfolio - with $800 billion of the bills for them still to be paid.

… But given the difficulty the Pentagon has had in getting Congress to kill politically popular weapons systems, many analysts raised questions about whether the Pentagon's efforts will succeed

…The Air Force has said it does not want any more of Boeing's C-17 Globemaster cargo planes once it receives those already on order, although the program is so popular in Congress, it may be difficult to kill.

Leslie Wayne, “Contractors Are Warned: Cuts Coming for Weapons,” New York Times, 12/27/05.

“[Receiving taxpayer subsidies has] been a great ride for the last five years. We will see a flattening of the defense budget. We all know it is coming.”

James F. Albaugh, Boeing chief executive, comments at industry conference, New York.

Ibid.