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President Announces Details of Wartime Defense Budget
Mondad, February 4, 2002

IMMEDIATE RELEASE
No. 046-02

President George W. Bush today released the details of his 2003 Department of Defense budget proposal to fight the war against terrorism, provide for homeland defense and accelerate changes to transform the U.S. military. To address these needs, the President's budget proposes $369 billion for DoD plus $10 billion, if needed, to fight the war on terrorism -- for a total of $379 billion.

The budget is an investment in the nation's most important priority in a world of constant change: a fundamental transformation in ideas, attitudes and action. The budget and the process of transformation it represents are based on the two primary responsibilities for the Department of Defense: to protect our nation and invest tax dollars wisely.

The roadmap for transformation is the Quadrennial Defense Review, a comprehensive examination of defense priorities. The road test has been the war against terrorism, which has witnessed the integration of horseback warriors with high-tech weapons, confirming the need for transformation while helping shape our priorities.

That process concluded that -- to prevent and, when necessary, prevail in -- the unconventional wars of the 21st Century, the United States needs solid intelligence, high-tech tools, the abilities to project force over long distances, hunt down hidden enemies, and, most important, well-trained and motivated people.

The 2003 budget balances immediate threats to national security with the long-term process of military transformation by:

Defending the American People
* Winning the War Against Terrorism and Protecting the U.S. Homeland
* A new approach to security
* Saving over $9 billion from management and program changes
Creating the Military of the 21st Century
* Investing in people
* Encouraging Innovation and Collaboration
* Investing in the technology of 21st Century warfare
* Improving the way the Department of Defense operates
Transformation: A Long Process that Begins Now
(More: DoD News Source)
2002 © The United States Department of Defense.

Dan