WASHINGTON — A liberal-leaning think tank has posted what it claims are budget figures for U.S. President Donald Trump's first budget days before it will be formally unveiled.
On Thursday, Third Way posted the budget figures online. The budget will be formally rolled out May 23.
Defense News could not independently verify that the numbers are correct, and the group notes that the information was current as of May 8, meaning there could still be changes that will be reflected when the budget drops officially.
"If it were to be enacted, this budget would be a catastrophe for America. But the President’s budget is, thankfully, not the final say in Washington," Third Way President Jon Cowan said on the group’s website. "Ultimately, it is up to Congress to bring more strategic thinking, thoughtfulness, and humanity to our federal priorities."
The document provided by Third Way includes 1,416 budget line items, including 192 for the Department of Defense, totaling $639.7 billion. That figure includes Overseas Contingency Operations funding.
For full FY18 budget coverage, click here.
Among the budget figures posted by Third Way:
- Operation and Maintenance (O&M) accounts across the Pentagon, services, national guard and reserve components total $228 billion
- Aircraft procurement for the Air Force is listed at $16. billion, for the Army $4.5 billion and Navy $15.2 billion
- Missile procurement of $2.6 billion for the Air Force and $3 billion for the Army.
- Ammunition procurement of $1.8 billion for the Air Force, $2 billion for the Army, and $1 billion for the Navy and Marine Corps.
- The Defense Health Program account takes $34 billion.
- The Counter-ISIS Train and Equip Fund sits at $1.7 billion.
The budget numbers also tab $10.2 billion for the National Nuclear Security Administration's "weapons activities" portfolio, a roughly $570 million increase over what the Obama administration projected for FY18 in its last budget request. Trump has repeatedly spoken about his support for nuclear weapons, and the NNSA was recently dinged by a government watchdogfor not putting realistic dollar values towards weapons programs.
Correction: This story initially published with budget figures that were incorrect. Those figures have been updated to reflect rounded figures.
Aaron Mehta was deputy editor and senior Pentagon correspondent for Defense News, covering policy, strategy and acquisition at the highest levels of the Defense Department and its international partners.
