Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel demands dramatic cuts in the nation’s military to bring the number of personnel to the lowest levels since before Pearl Harbor.

He never acknowledged, however, that the population 73 years ago was only 132 million—compared to 315 million today. That means the Hagel-Obama military, as a percentage of our overall population, would shrink to much less than half the vulnerable forces that tempted the Japanese and Germans in 1941.

Hagel candidly acknowledged that other nations now challenge U.S. strategic dominance through technological advances, and agreed that a weaker military brings bigger risks, but nonetheless urged reductions in forces, weapons programs, and even military pay and benefits. National Security should always be top priority for the federal government, but the Obama administration prefers investing in wind farms, high-speed trains and more food stamps.