President Donald Trump has proposed a staggering $1.5 trillion budget for the Pentagon as outlined in the White House’s recent budget release.
Amidst the ongoing conflict with Iran, Trump has emphasized the necessity of boosting military funding, advocating for a reduction in spending on social programs.
During a closed Easter lunch, Trump reportedly remarked, “We’re fighting wars, we can’t take care of daycare,” a comment that was inadvertently shared online through a video.
The war with Iran is proving to be a substantial financial burden on American taxpayers, with costs estimated to exceed $1 billion daily. Pentagon officials informed lawmakers in mid-March that the first six days of the conflict incurred expenses surpassing $11.3 billion.
While the President outlines his budget each year, the responsibility of enacting these priorities lies with Congress.
For the upcoming fiscal year, the White House has requested $1.15 trillion for the Pentagon in discretionary spending, reflecting a 28 percent increase, along with an additional $350 billion in mandatory spending, culminating in an overall 40 percent hike compared to fiscal year 2026.
At the same time, the President is calling for 10 percent of the budget to be slashed on non-defense programs.
He’s excused some of those cuts by arguing they don’t line up with his administration’s priorities.
President Donald Trump speaks in the Cross Hall Wednesday night about the war in Iran. On Friday, the White House released its dream budget, which includes $1.5 trillion in funding for the Pentagon
In the rollout of the budget, the White House included fact sheets entitled ‘Cuts to Woke Programs’ and ‘Ending the Green New Scam.’
Many of the programs on the chopping block focus on minority communities, which the White House argues have been ‘weaponized’ or are too closely aligned with ‘Black Lives Matter.’
The budget proposal asks Congress to cancel $15 billion in clean energy dollars that were part of President Joe Biden’s 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
It also asks lawmakers to defund refugee resettlement aid programs, instead focusing funds on removing immigrants from the United States.
It asks Congress to keep Immigration and Customs Enforcement funds at the same level so ICE can continue opening detention centers, with the aim of having 100,000 beds for adults and 30,000 for families.
The government is currently in a partial shutdown over the parties’ disagreements over ICE, with Democrats refusing to agree to funding the Department of Homeland Security unless changes are made to immigration enforcement after two Americans were killed by border agents in Minneapolis.
On Thursday, Trump announced he would sign an executive order to have all DHS employees paid, after previously ensuring that Transportation Security Administration workers would get their paychecks amid airport chaos.
Republicans worked out a deal to end the shutdown earlier this week, but both houses of Congress remain on recess for another week.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth addresses troops in the Middle East amid the war in Iran. President Donald Trump’s proposed budget boosts military spending by a whopping 40 percent for the next fiscal year
Trump’s budget also called for a 13 percent increase in the Department of Justice.
On Thursday, Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi, making her the second Cabinet member out of a job in just under a month.
The DOJ funding boost would be focused on prosecuting violent criminals.
The Trump budget also asked for a $10 billion fund housed by the National Park Service, to beautify Washington, D.C.
Trump also asked for $605 million to keep the National Guard deployed in the nation’s capital.
The budget is prepared by Trump’s Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, who the President likes to refer to as ‘Darth Vader,’ due to his ruthless role in dismantling government programs.
During the Wednesday Easter lunch, Trump looked around the East Room for his Star Wars villain.
‘And Darth Vader, where’s Darth Vader? Russ Vought. Hi Darth, hi Darth Vader,’ the President said.
