US Sec. of Defense Panetta Voices His Concerns On Future Pentagon Budget Cuts

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden meet with, clockwise from the President, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Lieutenant General John Allen, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, and United States Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker, in the Oval Office, July 5, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Defense Cuts Could Be Damaging, Says Leon Panetta -- Politico

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Thursday urged Congress to look to places other than the Pentagon for future spending cuts, saying the additional $500 billion in cuts that could come later this year would be a “doomsday mechanism” that would endanger national security.

“We are already taking our share of the discretionary cuts as part of this debt ceiling deal and those are going to be tough enough,” Panetta said at his first press conference since taking office a month ago. He cited $350 billion in defense cut over the next decade that are part of the debt ceiling compromise, adding, “I think anything beyond that would damage our national defense.”

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More News On US Sec. of Defense Panetta Concerns On Pentagon Budget Cuts

Panetta warns against doubling $350 bln defense cuts -- Reuters
Military Money on Chopping Block in Austere Time -- ABC News/AP
Panetta Warns on Across-the-Board Pentagon Cuts -- Wall Street Journal
Military money on chopping block in austere time -- Forbes/AP
Panetta calls possible forced cuts in debt deal 'unacceptable' -- CNN
Defense faces potential for deep cuts in time of austerity; Panetta warns of real damage -- Washington Post
Pentagon Sounds Alarm on Threat of Budget Cuts -- New York Times
Pentagon chief 'concerned' about future budget cuts -- AFP
Panetta, Mullen continue press to head off excessive budget cuts -- Stars and Stripes
Pentagon says projected spending cuts could undermine security -- L.A. Times
Pentagon Says More Budget Cuts Mean Furloughs -- Military.com
Pentagon’s First Installment on Cutting Debt May Be $28 Billion -- Bloomberg
Deficit-cutting deal may not dent defense spending as much as anticipated -- Miami Herald/McClatchy News