As Talks to Avoid Shutdown Near Climax, Pentagon Continues Bemoaning Stopgap Budgets

Government Executive: Though all agencies dread budget stalemates that risk a government shutdown, the loudest complaints about Congress’s habit of postponing tough decisions often come from the Pentagon.

In running the largest agency budget, the Defense Department must service massive long-term weapons contracts while protecting warfighters who face real-time life-and-death situations. This month’s fiscal 2018 budget drama predictably has Pentagon planners on edge. They must scramble—four months into the fiscal year—to manage priorities ranging from payroll to training to meeting procurement milestones.

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