President Donald Trump told military leaders Tuesday he is committing more than $1 trillion to strengthen the armed forces next year, the largest such investment in U.S. history.
"With that goal in mind, I've committed to spending over $1 trillion on our military in 2026, and that's the most in the history of our country," Trump said during remarks at Marine Corps Base Quantico. "That's a lot of money. I hope you like that. Ma'ams and sirs, I hope you like it. That's a hell of a lot of money."
Trump praised the military's "tremendous courage" in moving away from what he called a culture of political correctness, insisting the armed forces must be focused on "fitness, ability, character and strength."
"The apparatus of our country was not set up for merit. It was set up for political correctness. And you can never be great if you're going to do that," he said. "The purpose of the American military is not to protect anyone's feelings. It's to protect our republic."
Trump outlined sweeping modernization plans across all branches, including tens of billions of dollars to upgrade nuclear deterrence systems and construction of what he called the Golden Dome missile defense shield.
He said the new system would be "the most sophisticated in the world" and that allies such as Canada had already expressed interest in participating.
He also touted progress on the first-ever sixth-generation fighter jet, developed by Boeing and dubbed the F-47. Trump said he approved the name because of its connection to his presidency. "They said, 'We'd like to name it the F-47.' I said, let me think about it. Then after two seconds, I said, 'OK.' You know, that means 47. I'm 47."
The president announced plans to expand the U.S. Navy by at least 19 ships next year, including submarines, destroyers, and assault ships, while criticizing the aesthetics of some recent designs.
"I'm a very aesthetic person and I don't like some of the ships you're doing aesthetically," Trump said.
Trump emphasized his belief in avoiding unnecessary wars but said the military must remain ready.
"We want to fight, we want to win, and we want to fight as little as possible," he told the audience. "You have to count on people like me to keep you out of wars, because we don't want to go into wars. But when we do need it, you're going to be so ready, and you know it."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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