{"id":15488,"date":"2020-02-10T13:15:11","date_gmt":"2020-02-10T13:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2020\/02\/10\/mark-esper-on-the-big-pivot-point-that-will-define-the-2022-budget\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:29:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:29:15","slug":"mark-esper-on-the-big-pivot-point-that-will-define-the-2022-budget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/smr\/federal-budget\/2020\/02\/10\/mark-esper-on-the-big-pivot-point-that-will-define-the-2022-budget\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Esper on the \u2018big pivot point\u2019 that will define the 2022 budget"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 On the eve of rolling out his first budget since taking the top job in the Pentagon, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper is showing his support for the Air Force\u2019s multi-domain concept and a revolution in naval shipbuilding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in an exclusive interview with Defense News, Esper also indicated that a major update to the Pentagon\u2019s war plans will be a driving factor in how the department shapes its next budget request, to be unveiled a year from now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The secretary acknowledged that his stamp on the fiscal year 2021 budget, coming Monday<\/a>, will be somewhat limited, given he took office in August<\/a>, by which point most of the service budget work had already been completed. But he indicated that major budget movements may be on the table<\/a> come FY22.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here for more coverage of the FY21 budget rollout<\/b><\/a>.<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe services have already developed their budgets at that point. So now it\u2019s at Office of the Secretary of Defense level. As you know, at this point I was able to go through budgets, free up money. I was able to move some money around. But, to me, my big impact will be on the upcoming budget,\u201d Esper said Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis budget will reflect as much of my imprint on it as I could make in three months,\u201d he added. \u201cThe next budget that we’re developing now, clearly, will have my fingerprints all over it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those fingerprints start with Esper\u2019s ongoing development of what he described as a \u201cmodern, up-to-date, approved war plan against our near peers, at least one of them, so that we know it’s current and it’s in the post [National Defense Strategy] environment. We don’t have one of those right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t