Trump proposes “historic increase” in military spending

US President Donald Trump on Monday promised a “historic” increase in spending by the military in the next federal budget, which includes cutbacks in international aid.

– This budget is the expression of my promise to keep the United States safe. It will include a historic increase in defense spending, “the president told reporters after a meeting with governors at the White House.

A government source pointed out that Trump will ask Congress for a 9% increase in the military budget, which will be offset by cuts in other sectors of the public machine.

“Most federal agencies will get a reduction as a result,” said the source, who requested anonymity. “Also, there will also be a significant decrease in international aid,” he added.

US military spending is already the most important in the world. The annual budget of nearly $ 4 trillion sets the Presidency’s intentions. But Trump’s initial proposal, which promised to clean up the budget for excessive and redundant spending, does not include plans for mandatory spending or taxes that make up the bulk of revenue and expenditure.

The president faces a federal debt of $ 20 trillion and a deficit of 3.1% of GDP, up. Faced with the challenge, its promises – such as building a border wall and speeding up the deportation of illegal immigrants – cost an estimated $ 5.3 trillion, according to the apolitical Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Huge budget

The US defense budget approved for the current fiscal year – including the Department of Defense, nuclear defense activities and other related – amounts to $ 615 billion. This budget is almost triple that of China, which has the second highest military value, and almost eight times higher than Russia’s, according to the Swedish specialist institute Sipri.

Traditionally, in the US, defense and military spending account for half of the federal budget.

A day before his expected first speech in Congress, Trump anticipated that his bill for the next federal budget would focus on “National Security” to protect Americans.

“They’ll know details tomorrow (Tuesday) at night,” Trump told the press, referring to the speech in Congress. “It will be a huge event, a message to the world in these perilous times, about the strength and determination of the United States,” the president anticipated.

For Trump, the United States must return to “win wars.”

“When I was young, everyone said the United States never lost a war. Remember that? Now we have not won anymore, “he said.

Trump’s statements provoked immediate reactions from all sides. Senate Democratic Party leader Chuck Schumer has said that Trump’s anticipated military budget is “morally indefensible.”

– This morally indefensible budget of President Trump will send more and more money to the Pentagon to the detriment of the poorest and the planet. That is a bad idea, “said the legislator.

According to him, this increase in military spending will force cuts to programs “that benefit the middle class, protect consumers and ensure air and water quality.”

Earlier in February, in congressional hearings, members of the military chain of command claimed that the military was apparently weakened after years of budget cuts and more than two decades of involvement in conflicts.

Former President Barack Obama has applied defense budget reductions after the end of large-scale US operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.