Reporting from Washington — In a carefully orchestrated campaign, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates appears poised to push through what many consider a historic remaking of the military with relative ease, averting an expected battle royal with contractors and lawmakers.
"It really looks like he has played his cards well on this," said Todd Harrison, an analyst with the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, a Washington think tank.
FOR THE RECORD
Pentagon budget: An article in Saturday's Section A about a potential battle over remaking the military said Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates had moved to cancel the Future Combat Systems military modernization program, a system of unmanned aircraft, tanks, transports and robotic vehicles linked by technology. Gates has proposed cancellation of the vehicle portion of the system but would keep other parts of it and move toward development of new vehicles.
Gates unveiled a plan this month to shift money from big weapons systems including the F-22 fighter plane and invest more in programs geared toward unconventional conflicts such as Iraq and Afghanistan.
So far, lobbyists and lawmakers have been uncharacteristically quiet.
"My general perception is that Gates is going to get his way for 90% of these decisions," said Mackenzie Eaglen, a senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation.
Analysts credit the relative calm to Gates' policies and timing: He imposed strict Pentagon secrecy, making aides and commanders sign nondisclosure agreements, and he announced the plan just as Congress was starting a two-week break.
Gates' status as the Obama Cabinet's sole holdover from the Bush administration also has given his decisions an air of nonpartisanship, making it difficult for critics to charge political motives were at play. His proposal has won praise from President Obama and was endorsed by Sen. John McCain of Arizona, senior Republican on the Armed Services Committee.
The Defense secretary even took steps to preclude opposition. For instance, in calling to cancel a new generation of Army tanks and transports, he promised to fund designs for different vehicles that would meet future needs.
Gates began laying the groundwork before his April 6 announcement, publicly portraying some military efforts and weapons systems as being out of step with the pressing needs of enlisted personnel.
Then he moved to cancel the F-22, the Army's Future Combat Systems modernization program, a new Navy destroyer and the C-17 cargo plane -- proposing a larger Pentagon budget with more money for intelligence and personnel, paying special attention to medical and psychological treatment issues.
The defense budget next year will be about $534 billion, compared with $513 billion this year. Separately, Congress is beginning debate on a free-standing $83-billion spending bill for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
