Some areas of the Pentagon's budget, particularly those accounts earmarked for new weapon systems, could be squeezed as the economic toll of Hurricane Katrina becomes clear, according to defense budget experts. But for now, the Pentagon's budget is safe, they say, predicting that the Defense Department's coffers will not be raided to cover the costs of the hurricane relief and recovery effort. Some early estimates put that cost at more than $100 billion. In the short term, the Pentagon will...
