Tell the Pentagon: Stop Buying F-35s

The F-35 is a lemon, yet the Pentagon continues to waste taxpayer dollars on these deeply flawed fighter jets.  

More than two decades into development, the jet has so many deficiencies that officials still haven’t been able to properly demonstrate its ability to perform in combat. As of late 2022, the Pentagon was $165 billion over budget on the program and asking for another $1.4 billion to pour into the rathole that is the F-35. 

In short, the Pentagon has already spent hundreds of billions of dollars on a fighter jet that can’t fight — and it wants to spend more. 

When the military contracted Lockheed Martin to develop the F-35, the Pentagon expected a fighter jet that would fit the needs of several branches of the military. Instead, it got major delays and a seriously flawed, overly complicated aircraft that drove up the budget. 

It’s time for Pentagon leaders to call it quits on the F-35 — the fighter jet is riddled with too many flaws to resolve in a timely manner. We’re better off sunsetting the F-35 program and investing in simpler fighter jets that actually work.