Defense Secretary Robert Gates unveiled a new budget on April 6, 2009, that called for an end to big-ticket items in favor of troops fighting today's wars.

The new budget priorities reflected lessons learned from Iraq and Afghanistan, Gates said in a news conference announcing the changes.

"Our conventional modernization goals should be tied to the actual and prospective capabilities of known future adversaries, not by what might be technologically feasible for a potential adversary given unlimited time and resources," Gates said. "I believe the decisions that I am proposing accomplish this step."

Gates has proposed stopping production of the F-22 Raptor, which builder Lockheed Martin calls "a revolutionary leap in lethality and survivability over any aircraft in production or design anywhere in the world." Gates said the military has 187 of the F-22s already, and that's enough. They cost roughly $140 million a piece.

He also said he wants to stop production of the Marine One presidential helicopters, which have faced a number of cost overruns . "Today, the program is estimated to cost over $13 billion, has fallen six years behind schedule and runs the risk of not delivering the requested capability," Gates said.

Ending those programs would allow Gates to direct more money toward intelligence and surveillance, and to increase the number of helicopter crews, especially in Afghanistan. He also wants to add 2,800 personnel to the special operations force.

He also wants to devote more resources to the rank and file, such as increasing troop numbers, medical research and development, health programs for the wounded, child care, spousal support, lodging and education.

Gates still needs to get his budget through Congress, and it's widely expected to face fierce opposition. In some cases, the projects Gates wants to end employ thousands of people. The congressional delegation from Connecticut, for example, has already announced it will oppose stopping the F-22 program.

"Do you feel like you're walking into a buzz saw here?" a reporter asked Gates after the announcement.

"Well, there's no question that a lot of these decisions will be controversial," Gates said. "My hope is that, as we have tried to do here in this building, that the members of Congress will rise above parochial interests and consider what is in the best interest of the nation as a whole."

President Barack Obama said he would review the programs, because we "must rebalance our capabilities to ensure that our forces can succeed in both conventional war-fighting and in stabilization and counterinsurgency operations." The budget Gates outlined clearly attempts to do that. But others before him have tried and failed to stop mammoth defense spending programs. We want to see how much of his plan Gates actually gets through Congress. For now, we rate this In the Works.