The name “Department of Defense” is itself a gross distortion since there is not an inch of American soil that needs to be defended against an external enemy. The US government maintains a global military presence without precedent in history, with more than 700 US bases worldwide.
The USA unveiled a $1 trillion budget for the 2024 fiscal year, the largest ever proposed spending on the military.
Besides $842 billion for the Pentagon, which will undoubtedly be pushed even higher in Congress, there is $24 billion for the Department of Energy, which maintains the US nuclear arsenal, and $20 billion for military-related programs in the State Department, CIA and other agencies, bringing the total official military spending to $886 billion. The $842 billion requested for this year could rise past the $900 billion mark once Congress and lobbyists for the weapons manufacturers have their say.
To this must be added the real cost of the war in Ukraine, which is listed as only $6 billion for the 2024 fiscal year, which begins October 1. In the previous fiscal year, the Biden administration requested $6.9 billion but ended up spending $114 billion.
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