Theories of the State and Business Opposition to Increased Military Spending

Abstract

Theories of the state have been based on varying assessments of the degree and form of business opposition to state policies. I examine business opposition to the quadrupling of U.S. national security expenditures between 1948 and 1953. Although top corporate leaders endorsed Washington's general foreign policy goals, they opposed the administration's specific plans for higher military spending. The business elite sought to reduce military spending because they believed rearmament would adversely effect the U.S. economy. The business elite supported fiscally conservative government officials in their inter-bureaucratic conflicts and helped to limit tax increases and the government's power to regulate the economy. This in turn led the administration to reduce its planned military buildup.