The Guardian · US news · Original story
The Hegseth budget: defense secretary’s $1.5tn ask reveals military-industrial chaos
The Pentagon head proposed a 44% increase – to second world war levels – while ‘woke’ programs are gutted
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When the ‘“department of government efficiency” was raging unchecked through the federal government in February 2025, the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, ordered his subordinates to find cuts of 8% a year for the next five years, theoretically trimming a total of $340m from the Pentagon budget.
The disclosure briefly sent Palantir and defense stocks tanking – though soon the plan evaporated, as if it never existed.
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Aram Roston in Washington · Thu, Jul 23, 2026, 10:17 AM
US news | The Guardian
The Pentagon head proposed a 44% increase – to second world war levels – while ‘woke’ programs are gutted
When the ‘“department of government efficiency” was raging unchecked through the federal government in February 2025, the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, ordered his subordinates to find cuts of 8% a year for the next five years, theoretically trimming a total of $340m from the Pentagon budget.
The disclosure briefly sent Palantir and defense stocks tanking – though soon the plan evaporated, as if it never existed.
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