US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has directed the US military services to identify US$50 billion in programs that could be cut next year.
Hegseth has committed to redirecting Pentagon spending to more directly support warfighters.
In a statement late on Wednesday, Robert Salesses, who is performing the duties of deputy secretary of defense, said that “the time for preparation is over,” and “excessive bureaucracy” and programs targeting climate change or “other woke programs,” such as diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives would be targeted.
Photo: Reuters
“To achieve our mandate from [US] President [Donald] Trump, we are guided by his priorities including securing our borders, building the Iron Dome for America, and ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferencing,” Salesses said.
The Iron Dome is envisioned as an extensive, multilayered air defense system for the US that Trump has said should include the ability to shoot down incoming missiles from space.
The approximately US$50 billion would represent about 8 percent of the military’s budget.
The spending cuts mandate comes as the US military is quickly trying to build its fiscal year 2026 request, a congressional process that often starts late during transitions between new presidential administrations.
Hegseth has asked the Pentagon to find offsets — programs that can be cut to achieve spending elsewhere — for fiscal year 2026, which starts on Oct. 1.
The cuts would be as drastic as the single-year ordered savings across the military in the 2013 sequestration, a law passed by the US Congress that was intended to force the legislative branch to reach agreement on budget deficit reductions.
Because of the way the military budget is structured, long-term, high-dollar procurement programs at the time were protected, as were most entitlements such as military retirement and healthcare.
At the time, the accounts that were easier to cut were found in operations, maintenance and personnel. The services lost noncommissioned officers and cut training.
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