President Donald Trump unveiled a historic $1.5 trillion defense spending request Friday, the largest military budget proposal in decades, as his administration seeks to bolster America’s armed forces while slashing domestic programs by 10 percent.
The fiscal 2027 budget proposal represents a 44 percent increase in Pentagon funding from current levels, reflecting Trump’s emphasis on military investments over domestic programs . The request breaks down into $1.15 trillion in base defense spending and an additional $350 billion from a forthcoming reconciliation bill , allowing Republicans to bypass Democratic opposition in the Senate.
“President Trump promised to reinvest in America’s national security infrastructure, to make sure our nation is safe in a dangerous world,” wrote Budget Director Russell Vought in the 92-page document released Friday morning.
The massive defense boost comes as the U.S. wages its war against Iran, though the increase had been telegraphed by the Republican president even before the conflict began . The Pentagon has already requested $200 billion in extra funding to pay for the Iran war, but the White House has not yet officially made that request to Congress .
Congressional Republicans praised the proposal while Democrats condemned it as fiscally irresponsible. “President Trump’s budget is truly historic when it comes to defense spending,” said Senate Budget Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
“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.”
But Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, called Trump’s new budget “morally bankrupt” . “Donald Trump might be happy to spend more money on bombs in the Middle East than on families here in America — but I am not,” Murray said .
The budget proposal would fund 85 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets and includes initial funding for the so-called Trump-class battleship . Other specific funding increases include Trump’s controversial Golden Dome missile defense shield, money to build up critical mineral supplies for the defense industry and $65.8 billion to build 34 new combat and support ships .
To help offset the defense surge, the administration is proposing $73 billion in cuts to discretionary nondefense programs, a 10 percent reduction . Among the safety net programs that would be eliminated are the $4 billion Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the $775 million Community Services Block Grant .
The president’s proposed budget would cut $5 billion from the National Institutes of Health and eliminate several institutes at the Department of Health and Human Services . Trump would also cut an additional $1.4 billion in funding from the Internal Revenue Service .
The proposal faces significant hurdles in Congress, where lawmakers largely rejected similar cuts last year, with House Republicans cutting nondefense spending by only about 6 percent, far below Trump’s previous requests . The budget faces steep odds in the Senate, where Democrats’ support is required for most agency-level spending proposals to clear the 60-vote threshold. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Democrats will “fight this budget, tooth and nail.”
The timing adds complexity to congressional deliberations, as lawmakers continue to fight over funding for the Department of Homeland Security amid a partisan war over immigration enforcement . A partial government shutdown strictly impacting DHS has been active since February 14, forcing essential personnel—including TSA officers, Customs and Border Protection agents, the Coast Guard, FEMA, and CISA—to work without full pay .
Budget watchdogs warn the defense buildup could significantly worsen the nation’s fiscal outlook. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated the proposal would increase total defense discretionary spending by $5.8 trillion from fiscal 2027 through 2036, and add $6.9 trillion to the national debt once interest costs are factored in . The national debt crossed $39 trillion just weeks ago .
Net interest payments on the national debt are now projected to exceed $1 trillion in fiscal year 2026—nearly triple the $345 billion the government paid in 2020. In just the first three months of the current fiscal year, interest payments reached $270 billion, already surpassing the nation’s defense spending during the same period .
Even some Republican appropriators expressed concern about the scope of the cuts. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, praised the defense boost, but said the nondefense