Comment by bane

I don't believe that the feeling is that it can be done "cheap", but rather the inevitable draw towards privatizing previously government functions. This drives towards a more immediate profit motive, which inevitably pushes research towards a more applied focus.

Who's doing the research? Who's benefiting?

VC backed companies are often slotted in as the for profit version of academic R&D without the "encumbrances" of non-profitable blue-sky pure research.