Former pentagon No. 2 Urges DoD to focus on innovation.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra I.
• Position: Defense Insider

* The budget crisis should not distract the Defense Department from the pursuit of new weapons that it will need to fight future enemies, says William J. Lynn, former deputy defense secretary and currently the CEO of military contractor DRS Technologies.

"Our challenge is not just to protect national security and manage the slowdown, but to use our resources to shape the future of warfare as well," Lynn says.

The United States, regardless of the outcome of the fiscal cliff talks, dwarfs the rest of the world in defense spending. The key question for the Pentagon is how it will invest its money wisely to confront the threats of the coming decades, Lynn says. "With half of all global spending for defense, we can use our investment in technology, combined with our doctrinal flexibility and the superiority of our fighting forces, to leap ahead," he says.

Historical trends of past defense downturns bode well for technology investments, says Lynn. Research-and-development Funding...