What the latest budget request reveals about the White House’s priorities.

President Trump recently released his budget request for this upcoming year, setting the stage for budget negotiations later this fall.  

This isn’t the full federal budget – it covers only “discretionary” spending, the portion of federal funding that Congress actually votes on each year. “Mandatory” programs – which make up 75% of federal spending and include Social Security, Medicare, and interest payments on the debt – are not covered by the annual budget process.  

This request also isn’t binding. Congress often ignores presidential budgets, so actual spending levels next year may not reflect President Trump’s request. But still, this proposal offers a clear look at what the White House cares about. 

Here are the key figures that sum up President Trump’s budget priorities: 

$1.7 trillion 

The total amount of discretionary spending laid out in President Trump’s budget is about $1.7 trillion. For context, that would be a 7.5% decrease from last year, when discretionary spending was $1.8 trillion.  

22.6% 

President Trump proposed cutting non-defense discretionary spending – which includes things like transportation and infrastructure, healthcare (other than Medicare and Medicaid), and education – by $163 billion, a 22.6% decline from current levels. 

$1.01 trillion 

President Trump requested over $1 trillion for the Department of Defense. If Congress approves it, this would be the first time the Defense budget reaches the trillion-dollar mark.  

114 

The number of times President Trump’s budget overview mentions some variation of the words “eliminate” (61), “cut” (29), “end” (14), or “terminate” (10). In one instance, the outline states that “the budget proposes to eliminate nearly 40 Department of Justice programs” that are duplicative, fail to reduce crime, or are “weaponized against the American people.”

+$400 billion 

In 2019, the last full non-Covid year in President Trump’s first term, discretionary spending was $1.3 trillion. While this year’s discretionary budget may be flat relative to last year, it’s $400 billion or 30% larger than pre-Covid baselines.  

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