You’d think they’d be taking his opinion into account. It was a last ditch effort, but Defense Secretary Leon Panetta implored Congress to slash billions from the Pentagon’s budget for 2013. During a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Panetta said lawmakers should take out about $74 billion in “needless” spending on weapons that “have outlived their usefulness.” Panetta said he is working with Congress to improve the bill, but time has likely run out. Sen. Carl Levin, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said on Tuesday that negotiators had already hammered out the final bill, which will be voted on by the end of the week.
