weapons. Ike had arrived in office with the Korean War inflating the military budget to $42 billion. As they stepped down, Acheson, Lovett, and Harriman had recommended an additional $7 to $9 billion for air defense against the Soviets. One of the first things George Humphrey, the secretary of the treasury, did—with the help of Taft—was to help pare the defense budget down to $34.5 billion.
