Contrary to what the liberal mainstream media—and some of the more conservative outlets—President Donald Trump’s proposed budget doesn’t increase military spending entirely at the expense of cuts to domestic policies.
What it does do, however, is keep the promises he made to the American public during the 2016 presidential race. Although there are significant spending increases for the military budget, there is the expectation that the administration will tackle fraud, waste and abuse—particularly when it comes to military contracts for equipment.
Some “domestic” spending will be curtailed in the proposed budget, as well, but those cuts are in line with many of the initiatives Trump outlined in his campaign. The biggest hit, according to reports quoting personnel in the Office of Management & Budget, will be foreign aid.
As the Washington Times reported:
An Office of Management and Budget official, speaking on condition that he not be named, said foreign aid programs will take a disproportionate share of the cuts, as Mr. Trump moves to make good on his campaign promise to lessen the U.S. role and ask other countries to pony up.
“This budget expects the rest of the world to step up,” the official said.
The first look at Mr. Trump’s budget dealt only with very general top-line discretionary spending numbers, which account for about 40 percent of the total budget.
The other 60 percent are automatic spending programs such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid—the biggest drivers of ballooning spending. The White House budget office said Mr. Trump’s plans for those programs will come later, with the release of his full budget.
There is no guarantee the Republican-controlled Congress will implement any of the president’s budget priorities. But to get it signed into law, and avoid a potential government shutdown, both sides will have to find a consensus.
Trump announced his “public safety and national security budget” during a breakfast with state governors who were in Washington, D.C., for the National Governors Association meeting. He will likely provide a few more specifics Tuesday during his speech to the joint session of Congress. {eoa}
