“Not a single cent for this war”: Rep. Maxine Dexter blasts Pentagon’s $750M request for ships, jets

The Pentagon on ​Tuesday shared more details of President Donald Trump's $1.5 trillion defense budget request, which is reportedly the largest in history, and it marks the biggest year-over-year increase in defense spending since World War II. The mammoth budget request has drawn sharp criticism from Democrats, especially after Trump remarked that the U.S. can't afford child care as "we are fighting wars". Reacting to the recent details, Congresswoman Maxine Dexter vowed to vote against the request, claiming Americans "deserve better". 

In the $1.5 trillion budget request would twice as much as last year's defense spending, Pentagon shared that it had created a new category called, "presidential priorities" under which about $750 million will be earmarked for a Golden Dome missile defense system, drones, artificial intelligence, data infrastructure, and more, according to Reuters. The proposal further includes $65 billion for the procurement of 18 warships and 16 support ships for a "Golden Fleet". Thus, sharing the report on X, Rep. Dexter slammed the administration's spending priorities. "Somehow, there is always money for more bombs and jets—but not for working families. You deserve better," she wrote.  While the Pentagon's budget request does not mention the conflict with Iran, Dexter vowed to vote against a "SINGLE" penny towards the war efforts. 

According to the report, the budget includes over includes $102 billion for aircraft procurement and research and development, and $6.1 billion is requested for Northrop Grumman's B-21 bomber. Furthermore, senior officials told Reuters that the budget has the largest investment provision for drone warfare and counter-drone technology in U.S. history, with requests of $53.6 billion for autonomous drone platforms and warzone logistics, with an additional $21 ⁠billion request for munitions. The House Armed Services Committee is set to examine the $1.5 trillion request, with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Vice Chairman Dan Caine scheduled to testify on April 29, to justify the administration's most controversial defense figures.

However, even before the hearing, other Democrats, along with Dexter, are already lining up to oppose the move, especially after the president candidly remarked that the U.S. can't afford child care. The remarks came at a private Easter luncheon at the White House, where Trump claimed he had directed the Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought not to send "any money" for day care as the U.S. was fighting wars. When the budget was unveiled, Congressman Donald Norcross strongly opposed it, saying it was filled with "ways to make life harder and more expensive for working Americans," in a post on X. 

He argued that it was an instrument for the president to make his billionaire friends richer and fuel the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Like Dexter, Rep. Jason Crow also refused to vote for the budget, claiming the Pentagon couldn't even pass an audit in the past ten years. Furthermore, Rep. Seth Moulton argued on X that the mammoth sum of money could instead go toward healthcare, housing, childcare, and much more.