Jan. 8 (UPI) — President Donald Trump said he would ask Congress to approve a massive $500 billion increase in defense spending to fund his “Dream Military,” taking the Pentagon’s 2027 budget to a record $1.5 trillion.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, Trump said “these very troubled and dangerous times” required the 50% hike for the good of the United States and that he had reached his determination after protracted, thorny debate with his cabinet and lawmakers.
“This will allow us to build the ‘Dream Military’ that we have long been entitled to and, more importantly, that will keep us SAFE and SECURE, regardless of foe. If it weren’t for the tremendous numbers being produced by tariffs from other countries, many of which, in the past, have ‘ripped off’ the United States at levels never seen before, I would stay at the $1 trillion dollar number,” he wrote.
The extra funding would pay for new hardware headed by his “Golden Dome” air defense scheme and a new class of guided-missile battleship — items totally out of reach at current budget levels.
Trump said the income that tariffs generated, unthinkable in the past, meant the United States was easily able to afford the $1.5 trillion, while at the same time producing “an unparalleled Military Force,” paying down debt and granting a “substantial dividend” to moderate-income Americans.
That claim was disputed by the Committee for a Responsible Budget, which said tariffs would only generate around half of the estimated $5.8 trillion the higher defense budget would add to the national debt through 2035.
In a post on X, the watchdog said its preliminary calculations showed the spending increase would boost defense spending by $5 trillion, plus $800 billion in interest, while revenue flowing into the Treasury from higher tariffs over the same period would only run $2.5 trillion, or about $3 trillion with interest.
Tariffs are import levies paid by U.S. companies when they bring in goods and materials from other countries, a cost they either absorb or pass onto to their customers in the form of high prices. Overseas companies may also opt to absorb tariff costs to preserve their market in the United States.
Despite Congress having yet to pass a defense spending bill for the $1 trillion Trump is seeking for FY26, was hailed by some Republican lawmakers and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth who described it as “PEACE through STRENGTH.”
“President Trump is rebuilding our military — larger, stronger and more lethal than ever before,” Hegseth wrote in a post on X.
Raising the budget by such a significant amount will be tough, despite Trump convincing Congress to pass a reconciliation bill topping up this year’s budget by $150 billion, spread over five years, and support from some Republicans pushing for defense spending to rise to 5% of GDP, up from its current 3.5% level.
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., an advocate of higher defense spending, called it “a good news story.”
“We think we need a permanent 4 % or better. That’s what it’s gonna take to build our Navy, our Air Force, our ICBMs, our bombers, and take care of our troops,” said the retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier-General.