Move the Money

While the recommendations of the Sustainable Defense Task would cut over one trillion dollars from the Pentagon budget over the next 10 years, this would still leave the Pentagon a ten year budget of over six trillion dollars.

Today, military spending accounts for more than half of the federal government's entire discretionary budget. Nuclear weapons spending alone accounts for over $40 billion annually, and is scheduled to increase.  There is an obvious connection between the bloated Pentagon budget and the critical budget shortfalls facing virtually every community in the country.

Peace Action is partnering with Peace Action Education Fund on its Move the Money Campaign.  This effort will serve as a platform for average people to voice their opinions and demands regarding military spending.  Communities will utilize public forums, education, public demonstrations, local resolutions and petitions as tools to influence decisions made by our elected officials.

 The following are goals that Peace Action’s Move the Money Campaign has for 2013:

• Build stronger alliances between the peace movement and labor, economic justice and human needs groups, whose constituencies have been devastated by the economic crisis.
• Raise the stakes for President Obama and other elected officials in the 2014 elections as they define their positions on military spending issues through Peace Action’s Peace Voter 2014 organizing,  
• Develop educational tools on the federal budget and the impact of military spending on their communities for local organizers to use in their outreach.
• Work in key states to raise awareness and public support for reducing military spending by 25%.
• Support the local efforts of Peace Action affiliates and chapters in strengthening local alliances with civil rights, labor and other community groups and build city, state and national coalitions focused on reductions of military spending to meet human needs, and encourage participation in the Congressional budget process in 2013 and beyond.