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The U.S. armed forces have spent the past decade fighting two of the largest counterinsurgency campaigns in their history. In Iraq, they have dramatically reduced the threat from al-Qaeda and Moqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdist Army, and they are now in the process of doing the same to the Taliban and the Haqqani Network in Afghanistan and Pakistan. --snip-- In all, the defense budget could shrink by 31 percent over the next decade, according to Todd Harrison of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. That compares with cuts of 53 percent after the Korean War, 26 percent after the Vietnam War,...

Supercommittee member Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) accused Democrats on Monday of torpedoing the deficit supercommittee because a success would have “stepped on” President Obama’s campaign narrative. Speaking Monday on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Toomey said there’s “something to” suggestions that Democrats had an incentive to see the supercommittee fail. “That goes to the asymmetry of the incentives and I think there was something to that,” Toomey said. “The president’s fundamental campaign message was to run against Congress - never mind the fact that half of Congress is controlled by the Democrats, but that’s his purpose, and certainly an agreement in this...

With the Washington Post reporting – and Senator Jon Kyl confirming – that there’s a general sense of malaise surrounding budget deal negotiations, the end may be in sight. Unfortunately, the light at the end of the tunnel is looking more and more like it’s the headlight of an oncoming train. The congressional committee tasked with reducing the federal deficit is poised to admit defeat as soon as Monday, and its unfinished business will set up a year-end battle over emergency jobless benefits and an expiring payroll tax holiday. Those provisions are among a host of measures set to lapse...

JUPITER, Fla. — Not one of the old "frogmen" or young Navy SEALs who gathered this week at the nearby National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum for the annual Muster wants to see another war. Those who came here are veterans of combat spanning from World War II to the present wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to numerous other unnamed fights around the world. Within their ranks are men — and their families — who know what it means to go in harm's way, often without any recognition or public acclaim. The widow of a slain SEAL put it this way:...

The day after the passage of the debt-reduction deal, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta sent a message to the Pentagon’s rank-and-file–and to Congress. Failure to enact further deficit-reduction measures, he said, might trigger “dangerous, across-the-board” cuts to defense. The first stage of budget cuts under the “Budget Control Act of 2011” calls for $350 billion in cuts to defense spending over 10 years. But if lawmakers fail to find an additional $1.5 trillion in deficit savings, the law calls for a process called “sequestration” that would result in automatic cuts of $1.2 trillion–half of which would fall on the Pentagon budget...

The House's pro-Defense hard-liners Saturday stepped into the debt-ceiling drama, opposing the Pentagon spending levels proposed in debt plans put out by both Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). House Armed Services Committee Chairman Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) targeted Reid's debt plan. That plan, which the House rejected Saturday, contains large but vague Defense cuts. Reid's bill would cap annual spending by the Pentagon and other agencies over the next two years at $1.2 trillion, while also assuming $1 trillion in savings as the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts wind down. Reid's plan "would give the president...

Right Turn has obtained a memo from House Armed Services Chairman Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) to Republican committee members analyzing the defense cuts in the Reid plan Based on our analysis the [Reid] proposal would result in $868 Billion in defense cuts over 10 years when weighed against the FY11 budget request. Immediately the plan would cut defense in real terms below the FY11-enacted level of $553 billion and hold defense below the FY11-enacted level through FY13. It represents a $16 billion cut to our FY12 levels for next year and a $26 billion cut for the following year. Let me...

Politicians often rail against government spending, except when it goes to the military. Conservatives believe there is no such thing as too much defense spending, and liberals don't argue, for fear of being labeled appeasers. So when there is talk of the two parties agreeing to cut the Pentagon budget, it sounds like a monumental change. But probably not. It's a good thing that defense, which accounts for roughly a fifth of all federal outlays, is no longer considered immune to the need for frugality. But both supporters and opponents have a stake in portraying any trims as far more...

Even before the 112th Congress has been sworn in, the five dozen plus wave of new conservatives, who will fill its ranks, is having an affect on our tax structure. Whether the deal to save the Bush tax rates survives an up or down vote in the Lame Duck session or not, we are certainly headed toward a day of reckoning for Congressional taxing and spending. One of the ideas for reducing federal spending is cutting the Defense budget. In August Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced his intension to eliminate Joint Forces Command, a major combat command based in Virginia....

Virginia officials reacted with bipartisan dismay on Monday to Defense Department budget shifts that will cost the state thousands of jobs in coming years and will dramatically impact the economies of the Norfolk area and Northern Virginia. Most of the immediate reaction revolved around Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates's proposal to close the U.S. Joint Forces Command. It is a major employer in Hampton Roads, including Norfolk and Virginia Beach, whose elimination could translate into the loss of 6,100 military, civilian and contractor jobs in the region. But a proposal to slash the Pentagon's budget for military contractors over the...

“There is a rank due to the United States, among nations, which will be withheld, if not absolutely lost, by the reputation of weakness.” ~ George Washington It is official. Deputy Secretary of Defense William Lynn says we cannot afford guns and butter. So what happens? Do we fund the weapons or the troops who use them? One thing is certain: no one is going to be happy. Last week Lynn confirmed what Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said during a speech at the Eisenhower Library in Abilene, Kansas: Major cuts are coming. No doubt the library venue was selected...

It seems Barack Obama has a new presidential role model, at least as far as national de fense is concerned: Dwight Eisenhower. But the Ike that Obama likes isn't the easy-going golfing geezer -- and certainly not the grim Cold Warrior who promised massive nuclear retaliation on the enemy if they started any serious trouble. No, this is the Ike who slashed America's defense budget by more than a quarter after the Korean War, and who, according to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, was willing to "make hard choices" about where American military might should be used, and where it shouldn't....

President Barack Obama – who came to power with the help of government employee unions across the nation – and has lavished on them hundreds of billions in stimulus funds to keep them on federal, state and local payrolls with no strings attached – is moving to cut spending on salaries for military personnel. This weekend the Washington Post headlined story, "Pentagon Asking Congress to Hold Back on Generous Increases in Troop Pay,”, disclosed that the Obama administration is “pleading” with Congress to give military personnel a much smaller increase in pay than proposed by lawmakers. The Pentagon is arguing...

Volcker: Taxes likely to rise eventually to tame deficit NEW YORK (Reuters) - The United States should consider raising taxes to help bring deficits under control and may need to consider a European-style value-added tax, White House adviser Paul Volcker said on Tuesday.

Cuts to the F-22 Raptor fighter jet program could endanger pilots of other U.S. military jets, U.S. Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon said Thursday. Asked about Defense Secretary Robert Gates' recommended cut in the number of F-22s to be built, McKeon said the reductions would kill area jobs and deprive the country of stealthy jets that, in some cases, are the only ones that could accomplish a mission and come back safe. ... The Air Force had requested Lockheed Martin and Boeing, which jointly build the F-22, to produce 60 more of the aircraft but was hoping for a minimum...

President Obama's cuts in defense spending is just wrong on so many levels. When you are fighting a war on two fronts and facing two rogue regimes intent on building nuclear weapon, his defense cuts are putting all of our lives in danger. This is an affront to common sense. After using the Stimulus and subsequent Omnibus bills to reward his buddies and those of Nanci Pelosi's crew, the President is going to take from the money being used to protect our families. Instead of cutting defense, why not take the money the Democrats are using to reward ACORN. You...

Prague - The anti-missile shield project would be unnecessary if Iran gave up its military nuclear programme, U.S. President Barack Obama said in his address in Prague today. "If the Iranian threat is eliminated, we will have a stronger basis for security and the driving force for missile defence construction in Europe will be removed," Obama said. However, he pointed out that Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile activity poses a real threat not just to the United States but to Iran's neighbours and to U.S. allies. "The Czech Republic and Poland have been courageous in agreeing to host a defence...

The MSM refused to listen . . . their own narrative was more important than a strong America and a free society . . . we tried warning you . . . the Obama Truth Squads, massive voter fraud . . . phony birth certificates . . . broken promises on every important issue . . . FISA . . . now the Obama Brown shirts are listening in on your conversations . . . he kept his promise and ACORN helped set the country’s agenda in his first 180 days in office . . . he promised a compromised...

War On Terror: Islamic terrorists have attacked a hotel and a U.S. embassy in the span of two weeks. Russia is invading American allies and sending warships to our hemisphere. What would Obama do? Gut the military.That's right, the Democrat choice for commander in chief wants to not only slash military spending but dismantle our nuclear arsenal — all so he can pay for his massive new welfare programs. Didn't hear that in his acceptance speech in Denver? That's because he knows better than to make such an anti-military plan widely known. But he made the little-noticed pledge just before...

(CNSNews.com) - Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is facing renewed criticism regarding his national security policies as he continues his campaign for his party's presidential nomination. In a YouTube video Obama made for a liberal pacifist organization last year, the senator called for major cuts in defense spending, slowing the development of future combat systems, and cutting investments in America's ballistic missile defense program. Some conservatives have expressed surprise at the degree of Obama's proposals on the video, and this past weekend, Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-N.Y.) campaign released an ad criticizing Obama's alleged national security inexperience and trumpeting her as the...

Financial crisis rocks Swedish military Published: 12 Jan 08 10:35 CET Online: http://www.thelocal.se/9635/ Sweden's armed forces are mulling extensive cutbacks as a deepening economic crisis looms in 2008. The cost of running the Armed Forces is expected to exceed the military budget by between 1 and 1.5 billion kronor, Svenska Dagbladet reports. Lietenant General Jan Salestrand confirmed that the military was experiencing considerable financial problems. "I want to underline the fact that we are sticking to our allocation and looking after our finances - but this also means that we have to put measures in place to reduce our ambitions...

In the mid 1990s, as the Clinton administration began slashing America’s defensive capabilities—cutting not just “fat,” but “bone” as well—Senator John McCain warned that America’s defenses were headed for a “train wreck.” He was right. The list of personnel, weaponry and program cuts during the Clinton years is nothing short of startling:

President Bush set forth a global vision of a world without tyranny in his Inaugural address. Earlier, in her Senate confirmation hearing, Secretary of State-designate Condoleezza Rice had listed six countries which were "outposts of tyranny." Four of the outposts (Cuba, Burma, North Korea, Iran) have strong ties to China. Yet, it has been widely reported the Pentagon will eliminate, cut back or delay a number of major weapons programs under orders from the Office of Management of Budget to bring down the federal deficit. So the question is: Can the Bush administration muster resources needed to support its ambitious...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) would bear the brunt of proposed cuts in U.S. weapons purchases totaling $30 billion over the next six years, according to the summary from a Pentagon budget document made available to Reuters Monday. Nearly $18 billion would be slashed from programs run by Bethesda, Maryland-based Lockheed Martin, the Pentagon's biggest supplier, according to a trade publication, InsideDefense.com, the first to report details of the plan. The cuts were spelled out in a so-called Program Budget Decision signed by Deputy Defense Secretary Paul...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States plans to decommission one of its aircraft carriers more than a decade early and buy fewer amphibious landing ships for Marines and sophisticated new Navy destroyers, officials said Thursday. The proposals are part of an effort to slice $10 billion from the Pentagon budget for the 2006 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, said U.S. officials, who asked not to be named. The Pentagon is aiming for $60 billion in cuts over six years, said defense analyst Loren Thompson, citing Pentagon insiders. The Navy plans to decommission the USS John F. Kennedy, among the...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 29 - The Pentagon plans to retire one of the Navy's 12 aircraft carriers, buy fewer amphibious landing ships for the Marine Corps and delay the development of a costly Army combat system of high-tech arms as part of $60 billion in proposed cuts over the next six years, Congressional and military officials said Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Pentagon (news - web sites) is planning sharp cuts in the Air Force's program for its new F/A-22 fighter jet in a move budget analysts said was intended to offset mounting U.S. deficits and the growing costs of the Iraq (news - web sites) war, Wednesday's New York Times reported. The newspaper said the Pentagon's decision, which four administration and Congressional officials described on Tuesday and which Congress must still approve, comes as the Bush administration is pressing all agencies to scale back spending requests for the fiscal year 2006 budget, which will be submitted...

THESE IS HOW OUR MILITARY WAS DECIMATED UNDER (COMMANDER IN CHIEF)CLINTON, SUPPORTED 100% BY JOHN KERRY (THESE VOTES HE DID SHOW UP FOR). THEIR TERRIBLE JUDGMENT IS WHY OUR MILITARY IS STRETCHED NOW...ALL DUE TO THE DEMOCRAT PARTY LEADERSHIP (I USE THE TERM LOOSELY). Send to all...people need to know what they're voting for. 709,000 REGULAR (ACTIVE DUTY) PERSONNEL. 293,000 RESERVE TROOPS. EIGHT STANDING ARMY DIVISIONS! 20 AIR FORCE AND NAVY AIR WINGS WITH 2,000 COMBAT AIRCRAFT 232 STRATEGIC BOMBERS. 9 STRATEGIC BALLISTIC MISSILE SUBMARINES WITH 3,114 NUCLEAR WARHEADS ON 232 MISSILES. 500 ICBMs WITH 1,950 WARHEADS. FOUR AIRCRAFT CARRIERS...

When during the debate John Kerry said he opposed the development of bunker-busters he not only committed an electoral gaffe he provided America with an open window into his real attitude toward the American people. The more one thinks about it the more one realizes the enormous ramifications of what John Kerry said. Far from just being a key topic the bunker-buster statement could become the straw that broke the back of the John Kerry campaign. During the debate John Kerry stated: "I think the United States should have offered the opportunity to provide the nuclear fuel, test them, see...

Hugh Hewitt has initiated an online symposium concerning John Kerry's announced position on "nuclear bunker busters. (NBBs)" These are weapons that, targeted precisely, burrow into the ground to an undisclosed but significant depth, and then detonate a nuclear warhead of an undisclosed but significant strength. NBBs are not healthy for underground fortified targets. The current public information is that "research" to develop these weapons is underway, but that such research is funded only to a level of $35 million and not the "hundreds of millions" Kerry contends. It is likely, given the opaque nature of how weapons are developed or...

Soon after the 9/11 attack on America, the Bush administration and the nation's defense establishment began to mull how the nation could be defended against terrorists who might seek to attack armed not with hijacked airplanes but with a nuclear or other weapon-of-mass destruction acquired from a rogue nation such as Iraq, Iran, Libya or North Korea. In the years since, the rogue regime in Iraq has been removed and its efforts to develop WMD interrupted, while Libya's leader voluntarily gave up his nuclear and other WMD programs and weaponry. Libya's former nuke program sits in crates under heavy guard...

In recent days CBS News revealed 30-year old documents regarding President Bush's service in the Air National Guard. Those documents now appear to be forgeries. But what has been lost in the Bush National Guard memo affair was the release of another old document that appears to be much more relevant to the presidential election. Powerline Blog published a 1984 press release from John Kerry's senate campaign [Page 1 / Page 2] in which Kerry's stance on defense is clear. This press release is especially interesting because (a) Kerry is running on building a "stronger America" and (b) the Kerry...

Senator Zell Miller (D-GA), an ex Marine, is angry that the party he spent a lifetime helping to build has gone so far to the left that it is barely recognizable. Miller attacked the Democratic nominee, Senator John Kerry (D-MA), in terms that no Republican would dare to do. He gave a litany of the weapons systems that Kerry voted against in his two decades in the United States Senate. The Kerry apologists, who were all over the media the morning after the Miller speech, tried to suggest that when a Senator votes against a bill containing a weapons system...

Kerry's Voting Record on Defense.... ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kerry has voted for at least SEVEN major reductions in Defense and Military spending, necessary for our national security: 1) In 1996 - Introduced Bill to slash Defense Department Funding by $6.5 Billion. 2) In 1995 - Voted to freeze Defense spending for 7 years, slashing over $34 billion from Defense. 3) Fiscal 1996 Budget Resolution - Defense Freeze. "Harkin, D-Iowa, amendment to freeze defense spending for the next seven years and transfer the $34.8 billion in savings to education and job training." 4) In 1993 - Introduced plan to cut numerous Defense programs,...

Sen. John Kerry's campaign defends his proposals to eliminate major U.S. weapons systems during his career as a senator by claiming Vice President Dick Cheney proposed similar cuts as secretary of Defense during the first Bush administration. The spin-doctors in the Kerry campaign responsible for these claims obviously know nothing of history. These claims are baseless for the following reasons: (1) Mr. Kerry proposed eliminating 65 major U.S. weapons systems in 1984, including the ships, planes and missiles we currently have in our inventory that are the backbone of both our nuclear and conventional deterrent. If these proposals had been...

WASHINGTON -- President Bush's nominee to be the director of central intelligence, Representative Porter J. Goss, Republican of Florida, cosponsored legislation that would have cut intelligence personnel by 20 percent in the late 1990s. ... The Bush reelection campaign has been blasting Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kerry as deeply irresponsible for proposing intelligence cuts at the same time. A Bush campaign ad released on Aug. 13 carried a headline: "John Kerry . . . proposed slashing Intelligence Budget 6 Billion Dollars." But the cuts Goss supported are larger than those proposed by Kerry and specifically targeted the "human intelligence"...

While Sen. John Kerry continues his attempt to demonstrate his presidential bona fides by concentrating virtually exclusively on his four-month tour of duty in Vietnam in the late 1960s, it is instructive to examine the potentially destructive role he has played on the national-security front during his two decades in the Senate. Perhaps no issue offers more evidence of Mr. Kerry's foreign-policy follies than the matter of defending the American homeland against ballistic missiles carrying weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear warheads.     The issue is particularly timely given that the first ground-based missile interceptor was installed on July 22 in...

I received this list by email today. In as much as kerry is trying to get Americans to believe in his "reporting for duty" super soldier hawk persona I wondered how many are actually taking a look to see how his actions compare with his words.(My guess is very few). Maybe this is why his hawkish talk doesn't raise the hackles of leftists, they know there is no substance to it. The list; He voted to kill the Bradley Fighting Vehicle He voted to kill the M-1 Abrams Tank He voted to kill every Aircraft carrier laid down from 1988...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - If Democrat John Kerry becomes president he could cut up to a third of the annual $10 billion in spending on missile defenses, but overall defense expenditure would stay high, analysts said this week. Burgeoning budget deficits and the military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan are expected to limit growth in new weapons spending, regardless of who wins. And the costs of military personnel are expected to keep rising under either a Republican or Democratic president. "I would not expect a big difference, at least initially, if Kerry is elected, as long as the wars in Afghanistan...

ARLINGTON, VA -- Bush-Cheney '04 announced today the release of the campaign's newest television advertisement, "Intel."  The new advertisement highlights John Kerry's proposals to cut intelligence funding and his poor attendance record on the Senate Intelligence Committee. The advertisement will begin airing Monday on national cable and in select local markets.Script for "Intel"President Bush:I'm George W. Bush and I approve this message.Voice Over:John Kerry promises ... Graphic:John Kerry promises ...John Kerry:I will immediately reform the intelligence system.Voice Over:Oh really... As a member of the Intelligence Committee, Senator Kerry was absent for 76 percent of the Committee's hearings.Graphic:John Kerry...ABSENT76% of publicSenate...

[snip]* Military: According to his acceptance speech, Kerry claims that he "will build a stronger military . . . to strengthen American forces that are now overstretched, overextended and under pressure. "We will double our Special Forces to conduct . . . anti-terrorist operations . . . provide our troops with the newest weapons and technology." But as Bush notes, when it came time to actually help troops in a war zone now, where was John Kerry? "Last September, when our troops were in combat in both Afghanistan and Iraq, I proposed supplemental funding to support them in their missions....

Can You Name This Country? 709,000 REGULAR (ACTIVE DUTY) PERSONNEL. 293,000 RESERVE TROOPS. EIGHT STANDING ARMY DIVISIONS. 20 AIR FORCE AND NAVY AIR WINGS WITH 2,000 COMBAT AIRCRAFT. 232 STRATEGIC BOMBERS. 19 STRATEGIC BALLISTIC MISSILE SUBMARINES WITH 3,114 NUCLEAR WARHEADS ON 232 MISSILES. 500 ICBMs WITH 1,950 WARHEADS. FOUR AIRCRAFT CARRIERS AND 121 SURFACE COMBAT SHIPS AND SUBMARINES PLUS ALL THE SUPPORT BASES, SHIPYARDS, AND LOGISTICAL ASSETS NEEDED TO SUSTAIN SUCH A NAVAL FORCE. IS THIS COUNTRY: RUSSIA? NO CHINA? NO GREAT BRITAIN? NO FRANCE? WRONG AGAIN MUST BE USA? STILL WRONG GIVE UP? THESE ARE THE AMERICAN MILITARY FORCES...

Lt. Gov. John F. Kerry, a Democratic candidate for the US Senate, yesterday recommended elimination of at least $54 billion in spending from President Ronald Reagan's proposed $289 billion defense budget for fiscal year 1985. Kerry described his proposed list of cuts as "preliminary" at a press conference at the Parker House and said that he believed the US government could freeze defense spending at current levels without any adverse impact on national security. He recommended cancellation of 27 weapons systems including the B1 bomber, the cruise missile, MX missile, Trident submarine, Patriot air defense missile, F15 fighter plane, Sparrow...

WASHINGTON, May 10 - Even now, 32 months after the Sept. 11 attacks, America's clandestine intelligence service has fewer than 1,100 case officers posted overseas, fewer than the number of F.B.I. agents assigned to the New York City field office alone, government officials say. Since George J. Tenet took charge of the Central Intelligence Agency seven years ago, rebuilding that service has been his top priority. This year, more new case officers will graduate from a year-long course at Camp Peary in Virginia than in any year since the Vietnam War. They are the products of aggressive new recruiting aimed...

According to the funhouse logic of the Kerry campaign, I have no choice but to question Kerry's patriotism. As Mort Kondracke of Roll Call has been dutifully chronicling, ever since Kerry became the unofficial nominee, Kerry has claimed that criticism of his record equals criticism of his patriotism. In February, when Ed Gillespie, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, listed the number of defense programs Kerry opposed - the MX missile, the B-1 bomber, the Tomahawk missile, the Apache helicopter, the Patriot missile, the Harrier jet and the F-15 fighter aircraft -Kerry's campaign manager immediately replied, "Today, RNC chair...

"We are continuing a defense buildup that is consuming our resources with weapons systems that we don't need and can't use." — John Kerry in 1984 on the Reagan defense build-up. What are some of these weapons systems that John Kerry said "we don't need and can't use?" The list might surprise you. It includes many of the most important weapons in our arsenal and weapons that have performed brilliantly in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Among the systems John Kerry said he wanted to cancel were the B-1 bomber, the Apache helicopter, the Patriot anti-missile system, the Aegis...

here's a list of weapons systems Kerry has opposed over the years: the B-1 bomber, the B-2, the F-15, the F-14A, the F-14D, the AH-64 Apache helicopter, the AV-8B Harrier jet, the Patriot missile, the Aegis air-defense cruiser, the Trident missile Kerry sought to reduce procurement of the following: the M1 Abrams tank,the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the Tomahawk cruise missile, the F-16 jet

By JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - When John Kerry (news - web sites) offered a surprise plan to trim $43 billion in spending a decade ago, he encountered some harsh resistance: The cuts would threaten national security. U.S. fighter pilots would be endangered. And the battle against terrorism would be hampered, opponents charged. And that's just what Kerry's fellow Democrats had to say. "We are putting blindfolds over our pilots' eyes," Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, a decorated World War II veteran, said of the impact of Kerry's proposed intelligence cuts. Senators rejected Kerry's plan on a vote...

On Special Report tonight they ran a clip of Kerry saying that he didn't vote for the final version because it didn't buy troops body armor, and some other things I don't remember, but he'd voted for another version of the $87B bill. Carl Cameron explained that the other version was to be supported by new taxes on 'the rich.' My question, especially for those who have time and/or expertise to look up the answer is: Was the other version essentially the same as the final version except for the funding? It would seem to be significant if Kerry voted...

<p>President Bush, trying to counter John Kerry's record as a decorated Vietnam War veteran, argues in a new campaign ad that his Democratic rival has turned his back on U.S. soldiers engaged in war.</p> <p>"Though John Kerry voted in October of 2002 for military action in Iraq, he later voted against funding our soldiers," the Bush-Cheney campaign ad says.</p>