Stark Speaking

Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) today announced a bill called the "Defense and Deficit Reduction Act" that he says would "take defense spending back to 2008 levels for the next five years."

In a statement, Stark said the House has passed a "meaningless budget resolution directing House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan to freeze non-defense spending to 2008 levels," whereas his bill would have a "meaningful effect on the deficit, saving $182 billion."

From the statement:

"We can't be serious about reducing the deficit if we're going to wall off 60 percent of our discretionary spending from cuts," said Rep. Stark. "This legislation would save $182 billion, from a sector riddled with extra planes and engines that the Pentagon doesn't want. At a time when we are spending seven times the next closest nation on our military, we must look toward defense for waste and potential savings."

You can watch video of Stark during debate on the earlier resolution.