Leading scholars examine the links between domestic politics, defense spending and the economics of the US defense industry.

1 Introduction: Political Economy and National Security Part I: Cycles in Military Spending 2 Elections, Business Cycles, and the Timing of Defense Contract Awards in the United States 3 Do Leaders Make a Difference? Posture and Politics in the Defense Budget 4 Too Little, but Not For Too Long: Public Attitudes on Defense Spending 5 Risky Business: US-Soviet Competition and Corporate Profits 6 On the Domestic Political-Economic Sources of American Military Spending Part II: The Political Economy of Military Spending and Military Action 7 Military Buildup, War Escalation, and Business Confidence: Wall Street's Reaction to the Vietnam Conflict 8 The Political Economy of Military Actions: The United States and Israel Part III: Defense Spending and Economic Performancem9 'Guns' vs 'Butter': A Disaggregated Analysis 10 Guns, Butter, and Debt: Balancing Spending Tradeoffs between Defense, Social Programs, and Budget Deficits 11 Defense Budgeting, Fiscal Policy, and Economic Performance 12 Military Burden and Economic Hegemonic Decline: The Case of the United States Part IV: Issues in Defense Spending 13 Issues in Defense Spending: Plausibility and Choice in SovietEstimates 14 Expectations and the Dynamics of US Defense Budgets: Critique of Organizational Reaction Models 15 Conclusions: If the Times Are A'changing, Appendix: The Political Economy of Defense Spending Data Set