Letter Calling on Defense Committees to Oppose FY27 Pentagon Budget Request
Dear Senators and Representatives of the armed services and appropriations committees:
President Trump just openly stated that he does not “think about Americans’ financial situation” while spending tens of billions to wage his unconstitutional war on Iran. Meanwhile, people across the U.S. are suffering from skyrocketing costs of living, including dramatic increases in the cost of groceries, gasoline, housing and healthcare.
The administration has been remarkably candid about its callous priorities. In April, President Trump said “We’re fighting wars…It’s not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare, all these individual things.” Now, the White House is seeking to increase the already bloated Pentagon budget by an astounding $600 billion.
We, the 80 undersigned organizations, urge you to prevent that from happening by voting against any increases to the Pentagon’s budget during upcoming markup hearings for the fiscal year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and defense appropriations bill, reconciliation, and potential supplemental appropriations bills. The first hurdle, marking up the president’s $1.15 trillion base Pentagon budget request in your respective committees, is approaching. Failing to restrain ballooning spending in committee will set the stage for even greater increases later in the year.
Choices like these have already inflicted real harm. In fiscal year 2026, this strategy yielded devastating cuts to an already strained social safety net and the gutting of entire federal agencies devoted to environmental protection, lifesaving foreign assistance, and disaster relief. And for FY27, the White House is lining up further cuts to essential budget staples, like housing, climate initiatives, and education programs in order to cover the costs of unnecessary weapons systems and multi-billion dollar vanity projects, including his new “Trump-class” battleships and Golden Dome. The latter the Congressional Budget Office now estimates could cost $1.2 trillion over 20 years.
The Pentagon has not only never passed an audit and cannot account for the money it receives, it is also unable to spend what it already has. Nearly one year after the gift of $156 billion extra to the Pentagon through reconciliation, the Pentagon has yet to obligate roughly $130 billion of that funding.
People across the globe are now facing a financial crisis that has been compounded by Trump’s reckless and unconstitutional wars. Members who care about redirecting their taxpayer dollars back toward improving their lives and addressing their needs must do everything in their power to stop Trump’s unprecedented moneygrab for weapons, war, and waste. Two critical steps in this resistance are advancing committee-level amendments that roll back Trump’s astronomical Pentagon funding requests and opposing any bill that advances Trump’s unacceptable $1.5 trillion Pentagon budget.
Signed,
Letter Co-Leads
MoveOn
Public Citizen
Win Without War
National
About Face: Veterans Against the War
Alliance of Baptists
American Friends Service Committee
Back from the Brink Coalition
Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security
Catholics Vote Common Good
Center for Arms Control and Non-proliferation
Center for Common Ground
Center for International Policy Advocacy
Center for Victims of Torture
Civic Shout
CODEPINK
Common Cause
Common Defense
Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, U.S. Region
Council for a Livable World
Demand Progress
Democratic Messaging Project
Eisenhower Media Network
Earthworks
Endangered Species Coalition
Faithful America
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Friends of the Earth US
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
Greenpeace USA
Indivisible
Institute for Policy Studies, National Priorities Project
Institute for Policy Studies, New Internationalism Project
Institute for Policy Studies, Poverty Project
J Street
Just Foreign Policy
Justice is Global
Mennonite Central Committee U.S.
MPower Change Action Fund
Muslim Counterpublics Lab
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
National Nurses United
National Organization for Women
Network to Dismantle the Military Industrial Complex
New Jewish Narrative
Oxfam America
Pax Christi USA
Peace Action
People Power United
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Presbyterian Church (USA), Office of Public Witness
Progressive Democrats of America
Project On Government Oversight
Public Advocacy for Kids (PAK)
Public Citizen
Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
Rachel Carson Council
RootsAction
Safer Country
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas – Justice Team
The United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society
T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights
Union of Concerned Scientists
Unitarian Universalists for a Just Economic Community
Veterans For Peace
Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom – US
Women’s March
World Beyond War
Win Without War
Women Cross DMZ
Zero Hour
198 methods
State and Local
Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility
Chicago Women Take Action
East Valley Indivisibles, Sherman Oaks, CA
Indivisible Chicago Alliance
Indivisible Marin
Indivisible Westside Los Angeles
Nebraskans for Peace
Our Common Wealth 670
Peace Education Center
People Power United
Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility