Frankly, I don't like the whole concept of national defense, nor the "Department of Defense," nor Clintonista "peace keeping missions".  Go back to calling the sumb!tch what it is - Department of War.  I'm good with that.  There is no mistaking the function when called upon.  Furthermore, anything other than natural function results in serving a similar doubling ones chances of getting laid on Friday night behavior.

Foreign aid?  Well, if you are referring to the Progressives (yes, George W too) bastardization of the concept, then ya, it needs to be go to the operating table for surgery to remove the benign.

However, the liberaltarian cheap hippie utopian world concept never seems to grasp that "free trade" has a price, hence our first battle on foreign soil in 1805, that was regulated by law and resulted through negotiations with other governments.