President Trump wants to increase next year’s military budget to $1.5 trillion, in what would be the largest jump ever in defense spending, up from this year’s $901 billion allocation.
In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, the president said the windfall would help bolster U.S. forces during these “very troubled and dangerous times.” In recent days, the White House has pursued military action in Venezuela and across the Caribbean, and has threatened Greenland, Colombia and Mexico.
“This will allow us to build the ‘Dream Military’ that we have long been entitled to and, more importantly, that will keep us SAFE and SECURE, regardless of foe,” the president wrote in his post.
He added that the figure had been worked out after “long and difficult negotiations” with lawmakers, and that the $1.5 trillion in spending was possible because of “tremendous” revenues from his tariffs.
The funds would help bolster Trump's priorities, like a new class of battleships and the space-based Golden Dome missile-defense system. The president added on social media that his plans would include a “substantial dividend” for lower-income Americans.
The announcement came the same day Trump threatened to cease federal purchases from Raytheon, a major defense contractor, unless the company stopped doing stock buybacks and put more of its profits into investing in manufacturing capacity.
Some Republicans celebrated the president’s budget plans.
Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska told Politico the spending goal, which would need to be approved by Congress, is a welcome “good news story.”
“We think we need a permanent 4 percent [of GDP] or better,” Bacon said of his ideal level of military spending. “That’s what it’s gonna take to build our Navy, our Air Force, our [intercontinental ballistic missiles], our bombers, and take care of our troops.”
Others have expressed skepticism about the need for the spending increase and the ability of Trump’s tariffs to offset their impact on the federal deficit.
“President Trump will see our $1.8 trillion budget deficit and raise it by $500 billion more immediately,” Brookings Institution fellow Jessica Reidl wrote on X. “Of course, this has no chance of passing Congress, and even if it did, the military is not remotely prepared to ramp up spending 50% in one year. It doesn't work that way.”
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the spending increase, if approved, would add $5.8 trillion to the national debt through 2035, with military spending increasing by about double the level of expected tariff revenue.
If the Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s emergency tariffs, the military spending jump could even further drag on federal finances.
A mass infusion of military money could prove politically risky as Republicans head into the midterm season, where voters have said affordability concerns are a high priority and the GOP has remained unable to agree on a fix for skyrocketing healthcare prices after they let Obamacare premiums expire.
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