WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump’s new $1.15 trillion budget would reshape America’s government with the broad, conservative strokes he promised as a candidate, ordering generous increases for the military, slashing domestic programs and riling both fellow Republicans and Democrats by going after favored programs.
The president’s initial budget proposal, submitted to Congress on Thursday, would boost defense spending by $54 billion, the largest increase since Ronald Reagan’s military buildup of the 1980s. That means deep cuts elsewhere – the environment, agriculture, the arts – but Trump said that’s imperative to take on the Islamic State group and others in a dangerous world.
“To keep Americans safe, we have made the tough choices that have been put off for too long,” he declared in a statement titled “America First” that accompanied the budget.
Or, as Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said, “This is a hard power budget, not a soft power budget.”
It’s not entirely in line with Trump’s campaign pledges.