Defense Budget Analysis

The Defense Budget Analysis Program leads the Center’s efforts to provide in-depth, nonpartisan research and analysis of defense funding issues

Led by fellow Seamus Daniels, the program explores trends in the overall defense budget, military readiness, force structure, defense acquisitions, and military compensation in a broader effort to assess the alignment of the country’s defense strategy and its resources.

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Defense Futures Simulator

The Center for Strategic and International Studies, the American Enterprise Institute, and War on the Rocks collaborated to address a shared concern: a lack of understanding about how defense strategy and security objectives are translated into concrete budget choices. To meet this challenge, the three organizations built the Defense Futures Simulator.

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Don’t Let the Budget Deal Kill Defense Reform

While this deal may ease the budget pressures on the Department of Defense (DoD) for now, it comes with many risks—namely that policymakers will lose interest in much needed defense reforms and squander much of the additional funding.

Commentary by Todd Harrison — February 20, 2018

Photo: John Moore/Getty Images

Making Sense of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 and What It Means for Defense

The bill extends a fifth continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government through March 23, but more importantly, it raises the spending limits for both defense and nondefense funding imposed by the Budget Control Act (BCA) of 2011 for two years, FY 2018 and FY 2019.

Critical Questions by Seamus P. Daniels and Todd Harrison — February 20, 2018

Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

Trump’s Defense Budget: Results and Expert Predictions

A study of strategic intelligence forecasting inside government showed a very good track record, much better than what Tetlock found (David R. Mandel and Alan Barnes, “Accuracy of Forecasts in Strategic Intelligence,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, v.111, No. 30).

Report by Mark F. Cancian , Todd Harrison , Andrew Philip Hunter , Melissa Dalton , and Kathleen H. Hicks — January 23, 2017

Photo courtesy of Clifton Bear from https://www.flickr.com/photos/11444813@N03/28341298646/

Defense Reform in a New Administration

Within the span of one week in December, President-elect Donald Trump turned the defense establishment on its head with three tweets.

Report by Todd Harrison — January 18, 2017

Photo: SSG KYLE DAVIS/Wikimedia Commons

How much should we spend on defense?

President-elect Trump will take office with budget caps already in place that extend through his entire first term. Neither George W. Bush nor Barack Obama entered office with these kinds of statutory constraints on fiscal policy. The budget caps limit the budget options available to the next president and will force him to begin negotiating with Congress right away for some sort of deal that raises the caps.

Report by Todd Harrison , Mark F. Cancian , and Andrew Philip Hunter — December 15, 2016

Photo credit: WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES