Veronique de Rugy on America’s Invincible Military Industrial Complex

During his 1961 farewell address, President
Dwight D. Eisenhower famously warned the American people that one
of the greatest threats to freedom came not from enemies abroad but
from “the conjunction of an immense military establishment and a
large arms industry,” which over time would lose sight of defending
the United States and become devoted only to its own perpetuation.
Today, writes Contributing Editor Veronique de Rugy, we are living
Ike’s nightmare. Defense spending is not just one of the most
sacrosanct parts of the budget but also one of the largest and most
inscrutable. Adjusting for inflation, military spending has grown
for an unprecedented 13 consecutive years and is now higher than at
any time since World War II.