(Public News Service) – JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Officials said President Donald Trump’s call to increase military spending by $54 billion likely means cuts will be made to some politically-sensitive programs, from education and the environment, to science and fighting poverty.
Trump announced his plans Monday to the National Governors Association, and shared more details in a speech to Congress Tuesday night.
Stephen Webber, chair of the Missouri Democratic Party said it’s not completely clear yet where all the funding would come from and that federal cuts would have a trickle-down effect on states, cities and counties.
“For us, there’s some pretty extreme cuts to education that are happening in the state of Missouri, pretty extreme educational programs being proposed by Donald Trump,” he said. “So, I think that is sort of an area we’re particularly focused on and particularly concerned with.”
President Trump has said the money will come from, in his words, a “revved-up economy.” He has also said it’s time for America to “start winning wars again.” But the budget proposal has a long way to go, and some pushback from Congress is almost certain.
The U.S. spends 21 times more on the military than it does on foreign-aid programs.
Lindsay Koshgarian, the research director of the National Priorities Project said foreign aid for causes like fighting hunger and disease does more to increase stability around the world.
“We actually get a lot in return for that money, in the form of added security for our country,” she said. “And if we don’t spend that money, we will need to spend money on the other side fighting wars – and I don’t think that’s a choice that anyone would want to make.”
Koshgarian thinks any new military funding should come first from ending wasteful spending within the Pentagon itself. She said programs that make people’s lives better shouldn’t be raided when some believes the Pentagon isn’t doing its fair share to combat waste.
Koshgarian said now’s the time for Missourians to speak up.
“There are a lot of reasons for members of Congress to care about this,” she said. “The good news is that Congress actually has quite a large say in what the final budget looks like. So, the right thing to do is to contact your member of Congress and let them know what your concerns are.”