Gates to cut $78B from the Pentagon budget in 5 years

WASHINGTON (AP) - Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Thursday he will cut $78 billion from the Pentagon's budget in the next five years - money that will come from shrinking the military's ground force, increasing health care premiums for troops and other politically unpopular cost-saving measures.

The plan also identifies a separate $100 billion in savings, including the cancellation of a $14 billion amphibious Marine vehicle. However, the services will be allowed to reinvest that money in new weapon systems and programs that benefit troops, he said.

The move is part of a broader effort to trim fat from the military's mammoth half-trillion annual budget in light of the nation's ballooning deficit.