US Congress Republicans seek $27bn for Golden Dome defence system in Trump tax bill
Republicans in the US Congress plan to introduce a sweeping $150bn (R2.8-trillion) defence package that will give an initial $27bn (R510bn) boost to President Donald Trump's controversial Golden Dome missile defence shield, according to a document and a congressional aide.
The measure, which will be in addition to the approved $886bn (R16.7-trillion) national security budget for 2025, would also fund the building of 14 warships and lift homeland security spending. It will be part of Trump's sweeping tax cuts bill, which will cut taxes by about $5-trillion (R94.5-trillion) and add about $5.7-trillion (R107.7-trillion) to the federal government's debt over the next decade.
The measure, details of which have not been previously reported, was designed to address the military's most pressing needs, Republican senator Roger Wicker, chair of the Senate armed services committee, told Reuters in an interview.
He said it was focused on supercharging key areas such as naval shipbuilding, missile defence and space sensing and strengthening the country's military presence, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, part of a broader strategy to prevent conflict.
'Strength, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, will make China less eager to break the status quo, which has led to a vast global prosperity among people who've never had it before. This is part of a plan to prevent war,' Wicker said.
Republican leaders of the House and Senate armed services committees hammered out the legislation that will be unveiled as soon as Friday night.
The $27bn investment in Golden Dome will fund the building of more missile interceptors and the purchase of terminal high altitude area defence (Thaad) antiballistic missile batteries, according to the congressional aide. Thaad is made by Lockheed Martin.
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