Trump calls for $1.5T in defense spending in 2027, issues new executive order on contracting
President Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested that his administration will request $1.5 trillion in military spending for fiscal 2027.
That request would be a record high by far, exceeding recent annual defense budgets by hundreds of billions of dollars.
“After long and difficult negotiations with Senators, Congressmen, Secretaries, and other Political Representatives, I have determined that, for the Good of our Country, especially in these very troubled and dangerous times, our Military Budget for the year 2027 should not be $1 Trillion Dollars, but rather $1.5 Trillion Dollars. 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,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
He touted his tariffs as an enabler of the big boost.
“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 but, because of Tariffs, and the tremendous Income that they bring, amounts being generated, that would have been unthinkable in the past (especially just one year ago during the Sleepy Joe Biden Administration, the Worst President in the History of our Country!), we are able to easily hit the $1.5 Trillion Dollar number while, at the same time, producing an unparalleled Military Force, and having the ability to, at the same time, pay down Debt, and likewise, pay a substantial Dividend to moderate income Patriots within our Country!” he added.
Congress must approve defense budgets before they become law. Lawmakers have yet to pass full-year defense appropriations for fiscal 2026, and the Trump administration has not formally submitted its Pentagon budget proposal for fiscal 2027.
Some observers criticized Trump’s defense spending proposal.
“President Trump’s proposal to explode the Pentagon budget with a 50 percent hike next year is as wasteful as it sounds,” Steve Ellis, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan fiscal watchdog, said in a statement. “Congress is already poised to approve a 13 percent increase in Pentagon spending this year. We’re over $38 trillion in debt. We have real needs, at home and abroad, none of which will be easier to meet by hitting the gas pedal on the debt crisis. The president says this enormous increase would be offset by tariff revenue. Besides the fact that the math doesn’t add up, he has also promised that revenue to reduce the deficit, send $2000 checks to citizens, bailout farmers impacted by the trade war, and the list goes on. This increase cannot happen. It must not happen. Congress must repudiate this nonsense.”
Meanwhile, in a separate social media post Wednesday, Trump criticized defense contractors, citing slow deliveries of equipment and concerns about dividends and stock buybacks.
“All United State Defense Contractors, and the Defense Industry as a whole, BEWARE: While we make the best Military Equipment in the World (No other Country is even close!), Defense Contractors are currently issuing massive Dividends to their Shareholders and massive Stock Buybacks, at the expense and detriment of investing in Plants and Equipment. This situation will no longer be allowed or tolerated!” the president wrote.
“Defense Companies are not producing our Great Military Equipment rapidly enough and, once produced, not maintaining it properly or quickly. From this moment forward, these Executives must build NEW and MODERN Production Plants, both for delivering and maintaining this important Equipment, and for building the latest Models of future Military Equipment. Until they do so, no Executive should be allowed to make in excess of $5 Million Dollars which, as high as it sounds, is a mere fraction of what they are making now. Additionally, the maintenance and repair of Equipment, once sold, is far too slow, and must be immediately enhanced. As President, I am demanding that maintenance be ‘spot on, on time,’” he added.
He suggested that he would try to block dividends and stock buybacks for defense firms “until such time as these problems are rectified.”
On Wednesday evening, the White House released an executive order from Trump that encourages the secretary of defense to pursue available “remedies” when contractors don’t fix problems that have been identified.
Among its edicts, the order directs the SecDef to take steps within 60 days of the issuance of the EO to ensure that future contracts with defense companies contain a provision “prohibiting both any stock buy-back and corporate distributions by the contractor during a period of underperformance, non-compliance with the contractor’s contract, insufficient prioritization of the contract, insufficient investment, or insufficient production speed” as determined by the Pentagon chief.
Updated on Jan. 7, 2027, at 7:44 PM: This story has been updated to include information about an executive order released by the White House Wednesday evening. The story was previously updated at 6:14 PM to include a statement from Steve Ellis, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense.
