Mattis at GOP Retreat: US Military Should Be 'More Lethal' Read Full Article Here Ma
 

Mattis at GOP Retreat: US Military Should Be 'More Lethal'
By: Jason Devaney 2-1-18
RE: https://www.newsmax.com/politics/jam.../01/id/840855/

Secretary of Defense James Mattis told lawmakers at a Republican retreat he wants to make the United States military "more lethal."

The Hill cited a source in quoting Mattis' comments about the military he's charged with leading during the closed-door retreat at West Virginia's Greenbriar resort.

"I'm not subtle," Mattis said Thursday morning. "I need to make the military more lethal. Some people think I'm supposed to be an equal opportunity employer."

According to The Hill, Mattis' "equal-opportunity employer" remark was in reference to Democrats who want to see parity between increases to the military budget and domestic spending.

Mattis told Republicans that the Pentagon will ask for $716 billion for the fiscal year 2019 that starts Oct. 1. The White House asked Congress to allocate $668 billion for 2018 defense spending, but later increased that figure to $700 billion.

President Donald Trump signed the defense spending bill into law but it will not became a reality unless Congress rolls back a 2011 law that limited 2018 defense spending to $549 billion.

The U.S. government has not operated on an actual budget in several years, instead relying on short-term continuing resolutions that keep the government funded. This has hampered long-term planning for the military.