The United States has the largest military budget in the world -- about 38% of the entire world's military budget. In fact, the U.S. budget is larger than the the next 10 largest military budgets combined (of both friends and enemies). It is a bloated budget that is far more than is needed to defend this country.
But Donald Trump doesn't think that's enough. He now is proposing to add about $54 billion to that budget for 2018. And how is he going to pay for that? He says he will cut $54 billion from other government programs (which together don't add up to the military budget). Sources say he wants to cut money from the State Department (by as much as 37%) and from foreign aid. In other words, he's cutting money for diplomacy to give more to the military.
That makes it clear what his foreign policy is. He's abandoning diplomacy to favor threatening other countries with our military power. That's a sad commentary for a nation that prides itself on encouraging freedom and self-determination.
And it's not just the State Department and foreign aid that will be cut. Trump says he wants to cut all other government programs. The EPA budget will be cut by as much as 25% -- insuring that we have dirtier air and water as corporations are allowed to pollute without regulation. And programs that actually help American citizens will be cut more -- even though the Republicans have already cut them to the bone.
Some of you may think that the money will go to our underpaid soldiers and veterans. It won't. Veterans are paid from a different program (one of the programs scheduled to be cut), and service members will see little, if any, of the new money. The money will go instead to the military-industrial complex, to make Trump's corporate buddies even richer than they already are.
This is sheer insanity. The bloated military budget should be cut -- not increased.
