Trump’s Budget: Starving Everything Except the Military
Donald Trump’s federal budget for 2026 would funnel more money to the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security — and proposes deep cuts to almost everything else.
33 Articles by: Stephen Semler
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Stephen Semler is cofounder of Security Policy Reform Institute, a grassroots-funded US foreign policy think tank, and senior fellow at the Center for International Policy.
Trump Gives Pentagon $1 Trillion as Medicaid Cuts Loom
The Trump administration wants to slash health care under the guise of “government efficiency.” In case you wondered how sincere that rationale is, they also want to funnel unprecedented sums to a military that can’t even pass an audit.
Ending Pandemic Assistance Caused a Homelessness Spike
A new report from the Department of Housing and Urban Development affirms the obvious: ripping away pandemic-era welfare amid inflation and a housing affordability crisis was a complete disaster. The result: homelessness in the US is at a record high.
No Change in Gaza Policy? Really?
Despite charges of genocide, mass starvation, thousands of dead children, and the near-entire destruction of Gaza, when Kamala Harris was asked if she would “do anything differently” on US policy toward Israel in its bloody war, she said no.
Biden’s Other Big Liability: Not Speaking to Economic Pain
If the president’s catastrophic debate performance didn’t sink his reelection chances, his deeply flawed campaign strategy likely will. Cost-of-living issues dominate voter concerns, but Biden’s 2024 campaign isn’t geared toward voters’ material interests.
Israel’s Priority Is Killing Gazans, Not Freeing Hostages
This war would look very different if Israel’s principal aim was to free the hostages. But Israel’s assault on Gaza was never about the hostages.
On Gaza, Democrats Are Talking One Way but Walking Another
As public disapproval of Israel’s war on Gaza grows, it has become increasingly common for elected Democrats to criticize Israel. Nevertheless, the vast majority of them just voted for a bill that cements support for the onslaught as official US policy.
Joe Biden Is Shipping Weapons to Israel Every 36 Hours
The Biden administration has been able to maintain a low profile by spreading arms provision to Israel across more than 100 smaller munitions sales — allowing the president to posture as a peacekeeper while US weapons wipe Gaza off the map.
Joe Biden Isn’t Rescuing Hostages — He’s Enabling War Crimes
Earlier this month, Joe Biden expressed his concern for the Israelis taken hostage in Gaza. But if he really cared about their safety, he wouldn’t be sending Israel weapons for its indiscriminate and criminal bombing campaign.
US Weapons Shipments to Israel Are Enabling War Crimes
Joe Biden is fast-tracking weapons shipments to Israel to support its assault on Gaza. The types of weapons being sent have been used repeatedly by the Israeli military to attack and kill civilians during the last 15 years alone.
The United States Should Not Fund Israel’s Assault on Gaza
The US is poised to send more military aid to Israel, on top of the billions it gives annually. But Israel’s all-out assault on Gaza will not bring back the Israeli lives lost on October 7 — and it is already killing countless Palestinian civilians.
The Economic Situation for Millions of Americans Is Still Incredibly Dire
President Biden keeps touting improved economic indicators that don’t necessarily reflect the conditions of working people. Rather, data reveals an ongoing humanitarian crisis — one that Democrats were complicit in making, but so far refuse to acknowledge.
Military Spending Is Soaring, Even as Food Insecurity Reaches New Heights
As US military spending balloons to record levels, new data show that the number of US adults who don’t have enough to eat has jumped for the fourth straight month. The massive military budget is quite literally taking food out of people’s mouths.
The GOP Wants to Cut Social Programs in Favor of Military Spending. Biden Is Enabling Them.
The House GOP’s new budget would — surprise, surprise — further balloon militarized spending and take the axe to social programs. And Joe Biden’s love for military spending isn’t helping things.
The Cataclysmic Iraq War in 6 Charts
The US invaded Iraq 20 years ago this spring. From killing hundreds of thousands of civilians to redistributing wealth to the rich and powerful, it was an unmitigated disaster. These charts show how.
Over the Holidays, Congress Gave the Military an $860 Billion Budgetary Gift
At the end of last year, Joe Biden signed a $1.7 trillion budget bill that gives $1.1 trillion to the Pentagon, police, and prisons, including a whopping $860 billion for the military alone. So much for Build Back Better.
The Arms Industry Owns Congress
The new $850 billion military budget, which the House just approved and the Senate will take up soon, is a giveaway to the arms industry. Is it a coincidence that House supporters of the bill got seven times more money from military contractors than opponents?
The New US Military Budget Enriches Private Contractors at the Cost of Human Well-Being
Congress will soon vote on an $850 billion military budget that would lavish over $400 billion on private contractors. It would be a massive redistribution of wealth to for-profit hands — at the same time millions of workers are struggling to pay the bills.
How the Military-Industrial Complex Gets Its Power and Harms Workers, in 6 Graphs
The military-industrial complex generates death and destruction abroad while also harming workers at home: it funds politicians and think tanks, siphons off money from pro-worker programs, and turns the public coffers into a slush fund for war profiteering.
The Think Tanks Advising Congress on Military Spending Take Money From the Arms Industry
The Senate is considering increasing the Pentagon’s budget to $850 billion. Think tanks are key advisers to the Senate on such increases — and a look at those think tanks’ funding reveals they’re all getting money from weapons manufacturers.