A MERE 2.3%: With the current rate of inflation running at 6.4%, and the Fed warning of another inflationary cycle looming, the Biden administration is reportedly planning to propose a 2.3% increase in the Pentagon’s “topline” budget for next year, from $816 billion to $835 billion.

The numbers come from Bloomberg’s Tony Capaccio, who reported Tuesday that officials were touting the DOD’s fiscal year 2024 spending plan as “one of the nation’s largest peacetime defense budgets,” with record increases for weapons procurement ($170 billion) and research and development ($145 billion).