President Trump used his weekly address on Friday to garner support for a $54 billion increase in defense spending included in his upcoming budget, telling Americans a robust military is necessary for “national renewal.”
“My budget will give America’s armed forces the resources they need to achieve full and total military preparedness to meet any and all global challenges,” the president said in taped remarks from inside a soon-to-be-commissioned warship. “Investing in the military means investing in peace because the best way to prevent war, as President George Washington said, is to be prepared for it.”
Trump, who toured a naval shipyard in Newport News, Va. this week, said the reduction in military personnel and America’s naval fleet is dangerous for U.S. national security and is a trend his administration will seek to reverse.
“We cannot afford to continue down this path,” he said, noting that the USS Gerald R. Ford, the most expensive warship ever built, “represents the future of naval aviation and… will serve as a cornerstone of our national defense for decades and decades to come.”
Trump has proposed a matching $54 billion cut across federal agencies to finance his historic defense budget increase. The president has also pledged to provide better “tools, equipment and resources” to U.S. military personnel in order to best protect Americans at home and abroad.
