Pentagon Spending

Every year Congress requires the Pentagon to submit “wish lists” for additional weapons, offering a backdoor to boosting already exorbitant military spending. To rein in wasteful and unnecessary Pentagon spending, FCNL is supporting the bipartisan Streamline the Pentagon Budgeting Act.

Urge Congress to rein in wasteful Pentagon spending by supporting the Streamline the Pentagon Budget Act.

In all of these conversations, we heard one clear message: People want members of Congress to work across partisan divides on behalf of their constituents.

In a world that feels increasingly consumed by conflict, the United States faces critical decisions regarding national security and Pentagon spending.

Instead of giving the Pentagon and weapons contractors an additional $16.4 billion to fund their wish list for weapons and war, the American people deserve to get their own unfunded needs met. This year, FCNL’s People’s Unfunded Priorities List highlights four key areas where these additional funds could be better spent supporting human needs.

The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) deplores today’s passage of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (H.R 2670) by the House of Representatives.

FCNL lamented the status of the debt ceiling votes in Congress, making clear that negotiating the fate of social programs, benefits for low-income families, veterans’ affairs, and other government services under the threat of a catastrophic default and ensuing economic chaos is no way to manage the country’s fiscal affairs.

For too long, the Pentagon has been treated as a sacred cow in budget negotiations.

If you’re looking for where the action in the 118th Congress will occur, look no further than the federal budget. Some of the most contentious and consequential policy decisions emerging from Capitol Hill this year will center on federal spending decisions.

For 2024, President Biden requested the largest military budget in history — $886 billion.