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Donald Trump promises ‘historic’ $54 BILLION increase in US military budget

The President announced plans to boost military spending as the administration begins notifying federal agencies

Donald Trump

TRUMP has promised a "historic" $54BILLION increase in the US military budget for 2018 and will slash domestic and foreign aid, a White House budget official said.

The President announced plans to boost military spending as the administration begins notifying federal agencies of his priorities.

 Donald Trump has promised a 'historic' increase in US military budget
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Donald Trump has promised a 'historic' increase in US military budgetCredit: AP:Associated Press

An Office of Management and Budget official, who wanted to remain anonymous, said Trump wants to raise national defence spending by 10 per cent - which is already the highest in the world.

The official said: "We will increase security and we will decrease lower-priority programs. Most federal agencies will see a reduction as a result."

The official did not specify which budget would see the biggest cuts but said there will be a reduction in foreign aid and that most domestic agencies will face cuts.

 President Donald Trump speaks to a meeting of the National Governors Association
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President Donald Trump speaks to a meeting of the National Governors AssociationCredit: AP:Associated Press

Trump's defense budget and spending levels for domestic agency operating budgets will be revealed in a partial submission to Congress next month, with proposals on taxes and other programs coming later.

The budget officials on the call ignored requests to put the briefing on the record, even though Trump decried on Friday the use of anonymous sources by the media

Speaking at a meeting with governors Monday, Trump said:"We're going to do more with less and make the government lean and accountable."

It came just moments before he tweeted: "Obamacare has failed. We are going to #RepealAndReplace!"

Trump is expected to reveal budget details in a televised speech tomorrow night.

It will be the first of his kind since he was sworn in last month.

The White House refused to confirm reports on Trump’s forthcoming budget proposal.

“It would be premature for us to comment or anyone to report on the specifics of this internal discussion before its publication,” White House budget office spokesman

But the treasury secretary confirmed Social Security and Medicare will remain unchanged.

“We are not touching those now. So don’t expect to see that as part of this budget,” Steven Mnuchin



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