The White House released a budget proposal that would see an influx of funding for the Pentagon and deep spending cuts elsewhere across the federal government.
The Office of Management and Budget, led by director Russ Vought, released the budget proposal for fiscal 2027 on Friday morning. The materials don’t address mandatory spending, which includes programs such as Social Security and Medicare that President Donald Trump has vowed not to cut. The budget is just a proposal for Congress, not law.
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The budget would increase defense spending to $1.5 trillion, a massive increase of about 50% from the previous year, which included the large increase in defense spending from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Of that, $1.1 trillion would be through regular appropriations, and another $350 billion would be through the reconciliation process, a special legislative procedure that allows bills to bypass the Senate filibuster.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, praised the proposed investment in defense spending.
“President Trump’s budget is truly historic when it comes to defense spending,” Graham said. “It is the most robust increase in defense spending in many years, and it is more than justified by the threats we face throughout the world.”
The budget also contains deep cuts to government agencies to offset that new spending. Spending on nondefense programs would be reduced by $73 billion, or 10%. A fact sheet released by the White House says that “savings are achieved by reducing or eliminating woke, weaponized, and wasteful programs, and by returning State and local responsibilities to their respective governments.”
In a message accompanying the budget, Vought emphasized that despite the proposed 10% cut, investments in public safety are maintained.
“Within this total, the Budget maintains investments in border security and immigration enforcement
while protecting the Nation from threats of terrorism; delivers on the President’s commitment to support law enforcement and ensure they have the tools, technology, and resources necessary to keep themselves and Americans safe; and honors the Nation’s sacred obligation to military veterans,” Vought said.
There are notable cuts in the budget proposal.
For instance, it would cut more than $500 million in funding for the National Institute of Food and Agriculture Formula Grants, eliminate the Justice Department’s Job Corps program (which would save $1.6 billion), and cut IRS funding by $1.4 billion.
The administration forged ahead with the Department of Government Efficiency after Trump entered office, promising deep spending cuts. Although DOGE succeeded in laying off many workers and canceling contracts deemed problematic, it did not achieve its goal of reducing spending. Subsequent spending bills passed by Congress have increased federal outlays.
The budget also proposes adding spending for Trump’s priorities. For instance, it requests $8.5 billion for NASA’s Artemis program, which hopes to land humans back on the moon in the coming years. It would also request $3 billion for combating violent crime in U.S. cities.
The proposed increase in defense spending comes as the U.S. carries out a war with Iran, which has sent energy prices spiraling and has become a political liability for the GOP heading into the midterm elections.
Although White House budgets are merely proposals, they signal insight into the thinking of the administration in power and give clues on what the priorities for the White House are this year.
The budget comes a year after Trump and Republicans passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which extended the tax cuts enacted by Trump in his first term. It also included a number of new tax cuts, such as no taxes on tips or overtime.
The legislation will add $4.7 trillion to deficits through 2035, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.
The CBO scored the impact of the legislation against the current law, which means a scenario in which the tax cuts did expire.
In contrast, Republicans used a current policy baseline to score their bill. The current policy baseline assumes that the tax cuts were continued, meaning it is cost-free to make them permanent.
Republicans argue that the tax cuts will spur economic growth, which will in turn raise tax revenues.
The White House has also claimed that the tax cuts would be paid for by tariffs. The CBO had projected that Trump’s aggressive tariff agenda would reduce deficits by $3 trillion over the next decade. But the “Liberation Day” tariffs were struck down by the Supreme Court on the grounds that Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose the levies was unconstitutional. Since then, the White House has worked to replace them through other, more complicated mechanisms.
Deficit hawks have warned that the federal deficits are unsustainable.
The CBO projects that the federal budget deficit in fiscal 2026 will be $1.9 trillion, which will balloon to $3.1 trillion by 2036, according to its annual budget economic update. The CBO predicts that the deficit will be 5.8% of GDP in 2026 and grow to 6.7% in 2036.
Much of the increase is being driven by rising net interest costs. The primary deficit, which does not include interest costs, is expected to be 2.6% of GDP this year and stay below that level for the next decade.
Federal debt held by the public is also set to rise, according to the CBO. Debt held by the public is expected to be 101% of GDP this fiscal year, before increasing to 120% in 2036. The previous highest ratio was 106%, which was recorded in 1946 after World War II.
The budget is politically perilous, particularly given that it is an election year and Democrats are hoping to seize on voter discontent about affordability and cost of living in an attempt to wrest back control of the House and Senate.
Democrats will likely highlight how Trump’s budget would juice spending on defense while voters are upset about spending too much on gas and groceries. The war in Iran has caused gas prices to spiral, rising from less than $3 per gallon just a month ago to $4.08 now, an increase of 36%.
Democrats also attacked the big boost in defense spending at a time when affordability is a major challenge for many families.
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“Donald Trump is telling the American people our country somehow can’t afford child care, Medicaid, and Medicare, but is never too stretched to fund wars of choice,” said Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA), ranking member of the House Budget Committee.
“The President is now demanding a massive increase in defense spending, including a $350 billion slush fund for his reckless war with Iran, while cutting billions from health care, education, housing, and more,” he added in a statement.
