ABSTRACT
The economy has witnessed major changes in defense spending—prompted by World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam conflict, and the more Ronald Reagan Administration program to rearm America. The World War II expansion is often credited with lifting the American economy out of the Depression. Tax reductions spurred the economy but there was only a limited increase in federal, state and local public works spending. The Eisenhower Administration initiated few new specific conversion or adjustment programs during the Korean War phasedown. The closures and cutbacks affected specific individual communities and prompted the creation of the Defense Economic Adjustment Program to assist affected communities and workers. From an economic policy perspective, the Vietnam War is distinctive in that a comprehensive plan for addressing the economic impact of defense program changes was available at the time of the initial Vietnam buildup.
