Security: Pound-Foolish on National Security

A month ago, with much fanfare and relief, President Obama announced that American involvement in Iraq was entering a post-military phase. "Our dedicated civilians -- diplomats, aid workers and advisers -- are moving into the lead to support Iraq," the president said. The State Department would begin taking over training and capacity-building roles previously performed by the Defense Department, in preparation for the departure of all American troops by the end of next year. This phase of the Iraq war was dubbed "New Dawn."

Congress has responded to this strategy by cutting funds for civilian efforts in Iraq in ways that may undermine hard-won achievements and endanger American lives. Resources were reduced in the 2010 supplemental spending bill and slashed by the Senate Appropriations Committee in the 2011 budget. This week, Defense Secretary Robert Gates -- in a rare instance of one Cabinet secretary fighting for another department's funding -- responded: "The Congress took a huge whack at the budget the State Department submitted for this process of transition. And it is one of these cases where, having invested an enormous amount of money [in the war], we are now arguing about a tiny amount of money, in terms of bringing this to a successful conclusion."

For more, see Pound-Foolish on National Security by Michael Gerson, October 1, 2010 at The Washington Post.