Military funding
A Feb. 14 Boston Herald editorial – “There are no fiscal bright spots” – highlighted the bad news contained in the Congressional Budget Office’s latest 10-year budget estimates: a $1.7 trillion deficit in fiscal 2025, due to grow to $3.1 trillion by fiscal 2036; spending projections that far outpace projected tax collections; and the higher costs of an aging population that could challenge the stability of the Social Security and Medicare trusts by 2032.
One crucial driver of these problems, not mentioned in the editorial, is the mammoth US military budget. Last year, the military consumed $1 trillion and, if President Trump has his way, that figure will grow to a mind-boggling $1.5 trillion in FY 2027.
As the Pentagon budget grows, all federal programs that fund essential needs – such as housing, health care, education, Title I, childcare and Head Start, home energy assistance, and services for older Americans and people with disabilities – must compete for an increasingly smaller piece of the pie. Hundreds of thousands of families across Massachusetts who are struggling to make ends meet rely on these programs.
The US spends more on its military than the next nine countries combined. We maintain some 800 bases around the world. We spend huge amounts of money on “endless wars” – the 20-year war in Afghanistan cost us more than $2.3 trillion (or $300 million per day).
The Ukraine War, which just entered its fifth year, is the latest. The US Congress has approved more than $188 billion in military and economic aid to Ukraine since Russia invaded in 2022. Yet the war grinds on. Hundreds of thousands on each side have been killed or wounded. The war has devastated Ukraine’s economy, its energy infrastructure, and its countryside.
Ukraine is one of the most likely flashpoints on Earth that could spark a nuclear war. Each side has been climbing the escalation ladder, both in rhetoric and action. Yet Gallup polls have shown that most Ukrainians want a negotiated settlement to the war as soon as possible, with a significant portion open to territorial concessions. US diplomatic efforts should be supported. This war needs to end now, before it threatens the entire planet.
Jackie King
Cambridge
Protecting citizens
President Trump made a simple request during his State of the Union address. He asked Congress to stand if they agree that the first duty of American government is to protect American citizens and not illegal immigrants. Most Democrats did not stand. I have nothing more to add when this shocking display proves that the Democratic Party has lost its way.
Donald Houghton
Quincy
