Because we really can’t afford that $2 billion for national defense and job creation when we’re looking at spending $1.5 trillion on healthcare socialization, $2 trillion to fight global warming, and possibly another multi-billion stimulus package. We can afford trillions for junk science, but God forbid we spend even a fraction of that on national defense.

The U.S. Senate just approved a measure to strike increased funding for the Marietta-built F-22 Raptor, bowing to a veto threat from President Barack Obama.

The vote was 58-40 — not as close as many expected…

The vote was marked by a cross-party flow. John McCain (R-Ariz.) allied himself with President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. Gates advocated that the U.S. military cap the number of stealth fighters at 187. Obama promised to veto the $680 billion defense spending bill if the extra F-22 spending were not removed.

But of course. $1.4 trillion to destroy our nation’s healthcare system is just fine by The One, but a few billion to protect the nation is worthy of a veto. As for Gates and McCain, they’re only concerned with the short-term needs of the military — not future equipment needed to maintain military superiority. John Noonan writes:

One of the main justifications for killing the F-22 program was that the hyper-advanced fighter was irrelevant in a world of small wars and contingency actions. Secretary Gates is fond of pointing out that the jet has never flown a combat sortie over Iraq or Afghanistan — an argument that’s equally irrelevant. Our warfighting strategy, for decades, has relied on dominance of the skies. The fact that an American soldier hasn’t been strafed by enemy aircraft since the 1950s is no accident. Even in Iraq and Afghanistan’s counter-insurgency operations, we’re dependent on freedom of airspace to fly our UAVs, air-assault troops, and gunships. The F-22 was the world’s first air supremacy fighter. It was a guarantee that America would enjoy the luxury of friendly airspace for the next 15-20 years. It was also a tremendous deterrent against potential competitors, the strategic lynchpin for far-thinking Pentagon planners who considered American power critical to global stability.

Such is the real tragedy of the jet’s long and controversial existence. The F-22 was perhaps the most misunderstood weapon system in history — never about winning small wars, but rather ensuring that wars stayed that way.

But that’s not a concern for those living in the now and their friends across the aisle who seek to use those funds for the destruction of our healthcare instead. Oh, and have I mentioned that even more jobs will be lost as a result of this vote? Yeah:

Many senators supporting continued production pointed to jobs that would be lost nationwide. About 6,000 people work at the Lockheed Martin plant in Marietta. The plant’s payroll last year was $528 million. It is Cobb County’s second-largest private employer, trailing WellStar Health System.

So we can expect the unemployment rate to rise even higher than the level is was already expected to hit. The U.S. Senate voted to not only degrade our nation’s ability to defend itself, but to put more Americans out of work. Your Congress at work.

Call them here: 202-224-3121.