John,

The U.S. military budget is $858 billion and rising towards $1 trillion. At the same time, millions of families, people with disabilities, and aging adults are losing access to medical coverage and nutritional assistance thanks to the end of pandemic-era programs.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

With negotiations over the fiscal year 2024 budget underway, there is a very real concern of a bipartisan push to increase Pentagon spending, likely at the expense of human needs programs. While a return to FY2022 levels, as demanded by right-wing members of the House, would result in a 22% cut to critical programs including education, housing, nutrition, and more if Pentagon spending stays flat -- an increase in Pentagon spending could result in even deeper cuts. And there will be a lot of pressure to increase Pentagon spending.

A budget is a moral document. Spending nearly $1 trillion on the military while millions of children go hungry and live in poverty is unconscionable. Join us in sending a direct message to Congress demanding they cut wasteful Pentagon spending and reinvest that money in vulnerable communities.

The Pentagon budget should be subject to the same oversight and discipline as other spending. The Pentagon’s budget exceeds the defense budgets of China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, India, France, the United Kingdom, and Japan combined. One-third to one-half of its budget goes to corporate military contractors,¹ who spent over $100 million on lobbyists² during the first three quarters of 2022. Yet the Pentagon is the only federal agency that has never passed a basic financial audit.

Throwing huge increases year after year to the Pentagon’s corporate contractors undermines our security by preventing us from investing in the shared prosperity that comes from more housing, climate and public health protections, ending hunger, more education, and jobs.

Click here to tell Congress to invest in working people, not wasteful Pentagon spending.

Thank you for all you do to support funding for critical needs programs,

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

¹ 20 Years of War: A Costs of War Research Series
² Defense sector spent $101 million on lobbying during the first three quarters of 2022