Senator Markey Introduces Legislation to Slash Wasteful Defense Spending

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Washington (June 16, 2026) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today held a press conference to call for major cuts to the Pentagon's budget request for Fiscal Year 2027, in light of Donald Trump's illegal war in Iran and as Trump pushes to increase an already outrageously bloated defense budget to $1.5 trillion - the highest since World War II. Senator Markey also today introduced the Slash the Pentagon Act, legislation to cut the budget of the Department of Defense and cap it at $750 billion - half of Trump's bloated budget request. Senator Markey is introducing the legislation as Americans struggle to pay for healthcare, rent, electricity, groceries, and gas, while Trump has spent over $100 billion on his expensive, dangerous, and unnecessary war with Iran.

"Instead of funding Medicaid and education or investing in veterans' care, Republicans want to pad the pockets of gold-plated defense contractors with billions more dollars for weapons and wars we do not need," said Senator Markey. "Just before SpaceX's IPO made Elon Musk a trillionaire, Trump gave SpaceX billions in contracts for his expensive and ineffective 'Golden Dome' system. Coincidence? No, corruption. It's time to put people before the Pentagon and make major cuts to Trump's bloated and wasteful defense spending. We should invest in our hospitals, schools, affordable housing, and the real security American families need right now - not expensive wars and weapons that make us less safe."

During the press conference, Senator Markey, joined by advocates, highlighted the better ways to use a $750 billion cut from Trump's $1.5 trillion military budget:

• Trains, not warplanes:
• • Build high-speed rail across the nation, expand existing passenger rail service, and electrify the most heavily polluting railyards and corridors ($205 billion)
• Health care, not warfare:
• • Cancel out 100 percent of Americans' medical debt ($220 billion)
• Bread, not bombs:
• • Fully fund SNAP and feed hungry families nationwide over the next two years ($200 billion)
• Education, not annihilation:
• • Provide children with Head Start and Early Head Start for the next decade ($125 billion)

"For decades we've been told there is always enough money for weapons and war but never enough for the challenges our communities face day-to-day," said Shayna Lewis, Deputy Director of Win Without War. "Now, as families grapple with rising costs, President Trump is demanding an unthinkable $1.5 trillion Pentagon budget - all while brushing aside the concerns and struggles of the American people. Thankfully, a growing coalition of lawmakers is listening, and gearing up to bring spending back into line with people's needs."

Senator Markey has consistently voted against the ever-growing defense budget and offered amendments to put a check on the Pentagon's nuclear capacities.

• In December, Senator Markey voted against the $1 trillion NDAA for FY 2026.
• In September, Senator Markey filed eight amendments to the NDAA, including amendments to limit funding for President Trump's destabilizing "Golden Dome" missile interceptor scheme, the over-budget Sentinel nuclear missile, and the dangerous transfer of weapons-usable plutonium to private industry.
• • One of the amendments was Senators Markey and Bernie Sanders' (I-Vt.) Smarter Approach to Nuclear Expenditures (SANE) Act, which would reduce wasteful nuclear weapons programs and generate tens of billions of dollars in cost savings.

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