Romney has said he will grow the military
But he hasn't said how.
This is sort of in my rice bowl right now, mid-grade officer with 2 in college, pondering retirement. According to folks in uniform who know the numbers, unless they increase our budget, we will have to shrink because costs are going up - we were just legislated into using $14 a gal biofuel on the west coast for heaven's sake, while we sent thousands of E-6s packing when we promised them retirement. Maintenance costs alone keep getting kicked on the down the road ... we're very near a critical mass level where one day, air force won't fly, navy won't sail because its all broke and no money to fix it. There is no alternative but to cut the military to reduce costs, and that's OUR (DOD) opinion.
Or start another war ... who wants that?
Either way, you're talking increasing tax revenues, and protecting them from all other spending. If we cut everything out the budget today, and I mean everything, except defense and entitlements, we'd still not bring enough in taxes to cover just the day to day operational costs, never mind grow. That's a fact.
So we shrink, but we shrink strategically, not politically, and that's exactly what Romney doesn't understand.