Ro Khanna: Pentagon's military spending is inefficient and outdated

The U.S. Department of Defense (Pentagon) is struggling with a stubbornly slow and wildly over-budget defense acquisition process, which is undermining its ability to update capabilities for the modern threat environment. Despite spending over $1 trillion on defense, the U.S. lags behind countries like China in fielding hypersonic weapons, missile interceptors, and autonomous technologies such as military robots and drone swarms. Congress has a crucial role in addressing this issue, possessing both legislative authority and the power of the purse.

Since the 1980s, the slow and over-budget nature of defense acquisitions has progressively undermined the U.S. military. For instance, in fiscal year 2026, the U.S. military is spending $24.4 billion for the controversial Golden Dome missile defense system and $3.3 billion for the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program, even though neither program will strengthen the U.S. ability to deter or prevail in a modern conventional conflict. Both parties acknowledge that the United States is paying too much for too little.

The consolidation of the defense industry, which began in 1993, has resulted in a slower, less innovative, and less accessible industry for new market entrants. Today, every major acquisition system, from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to the Ford-class aircraft carrier, is over budget or behind schedule. Congress can improve the situation through more aggressive oversight, potentially including antitrust actions, and by incorporating a wider range of companies into the acquisitions process.

Congress can also help rightsize the Defense Department’s budget by approving divestments of outdated programs and technologies, and by expediting funding for more strategic initiatives. For example, the air force realized back in 2014 that the A-10 aircraft, created in the 1970s, cannot survive today’s battlefield environment and will siphon funds and personnel from platforms better designed for modern warfare.