Federal Budget Analysis: Military & Security
A Ten Percent Pentagon Cut Would Return Us to Obama-Biden Levels
Aug. 11, 2020
As part of the annual must-pass military spending and policy bill (the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, or “NDAA”), progressive lawmakers have put forward a proposal to cut the massive $740 billion Pentagon budget by 10 percent. The amendment is being introduced on the Senate side by Senator Bernie Sanders, joined by Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and on the House side, by Representatives Barbara Lee and Mark Pocan.
Ten Better Uses for 10% of the Pentagon Budget
Aug. 11, 2020
A $74 billion cut is a strong step toward better spending priorities, and could make a tremendous difference in other programs ranging from health care and education to job creation at a time when it is desperately needed.
A Local Resolution to End the Transfer of Military Equipment to Police
June 25, 2020
Since 1990, the Department of Defense has transfered more than $7 billion worth of military equipment to more than 8,000 law enforcement agencies around the country through what is known as the 1033 Program. As part of the larger effort to defund the police, invest in communities and end structural racism, ending the 1033 program is an essential step to demilitarizing our communities and saving lives.
The Militarized Budget 2020
June 22, 2020
In 2019, the U.S. "militarized" budget amounted to 64.5 percent of discretionary spending.
US Over-Investment in the Pentagon Left Us Vulnerable to the Coronavirus
June 15, 2020
Congress allocates hundreds of billions of dollars to the Pentagon and militarized policing and immigration systems in the name of security, while underinvesting in priorities like health care, medical research and poverty programs that could keep us safe during this crisis.
No Warming, No War: How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis—and Vice Versa
April 22, 2020
Climate change and militarism intersect in a variety of alarming ways: Recognizing that the impacts of climate change will dramatically increase instability around the globe, this paper examines the role of militarism in a climate-changed world.
Also Includes:
Three Big Ideas for Reducing Military Spending
March 2, 2020
The time has come for an end to the United States ill-conceived wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the moment is ripe for a new peace dividend. Today’s threats are mostly non-military in nature: climate change, global economic inequality, and rising nationalism all do not have military solutions.
Fact Sheet: Defund Militarism in the United States
March 2, 2020
Militarism and violence are the hallmarks of U.S. policy at home and abroad. From war to mass incarceration and beyond, these policies amplify poverty, racism and environmental degradation. They can and must change.
President Trump's 2021 Budget Prioritizes the Pentagon
Feb. 10, 2020
President Trump released his fourth budget proposal today, and the priorities are crystal clear. Just four agencies rate spending increases in the Trump 2021 budget: the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Treasury Department. From Agriculture to Education, and from Commerce to State, every other federal agency would face cuts under the president’s proposal. Across the board, the Trump budget prioritizes brute force and military solutions over humanitarian and diplomatic ones.
A Unified Budget to Demilitarize America, At Home and Abroad
Jan. 7, 2020
NPP's Ashik Siddique addresses the Congressional Progressive Caucus Summit to explain how we could safely shift as much as $350 billion per year away from the Pentagon by ending the endless wars, closing 60% of foreign bases, cutting unnecessary weapons, and much more.