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Military bracing for big budget cuts

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    How will Pentagon potentially save money?

  • Duration 2:15
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The top of the news and America's military budget could be -- -- big plus at least if former Republican senator Chuck Hagel gets his way.

President Obama has nominated the Vietnam -- to take -- Defense Secretary.

Keep in mind senator hagel has called the Defense Department bloated.

So between his views and a half trillion dollars an automatic spending cuts now looming.

The US military may soon have to final -- to save a lot of money.

Jennifer Griffin with the news she's live at the Pentagon tonight Jennifer tell us about these potential cuts if you would.

Well the first cuts will probably be to the size of the force the air force announced on Friday.

That it was already planning to cut the size of its four -- to cut back on.

The number of flying hours that it's -- planes do.

Right now the US is spending about 85 billion dollars a year on the war in Afghanistan that 66000.

Troops there.

The talk now is to go down to about three or 6000 troops in Afghanistan.

Which would save the tax -- about -- five billion dollars a year.

But everybody forgets it -- if we suddenly have a crisis in the gulf with Iran.

If we suddenly face a nuclear issue which forces us to deal with preventive strikes.

Then we have a completely different defense and military spending profile again.

With things heating up and Molly.

You have US forces pulling out of one area but it appears as if the war is spreading to another region Shepperd and former senator hagel is also said that he -- to reduce our nuclear stockpile.

Absolutely in fact he agreed with -- an advocacy group known as global zero which called for cutting the nuclear.

Arsenal by 80%.

That group wants to cut back on the US nuclear weapons arsenal.

That cut could save a hundred billion dollars over ten years the group estimated the problem is in speaking with military experts and secretary.

That in Defense Secretary Robert Gates found this when he tried to look into this a few years back.

Is -- they found it to get rid of nuclear weapons.

Is actually really costly because you have to paid -- modernize the nuclear weapons in order to keep them as an effective deterrent.

Separate Jennifer Griffin at the Pentagon tonight Jim thanks very much.

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