Trump is going to lay out his actual spending priorities, finally. Advance press indicates a huge spike in military spending, and cuts to just about everything else.

What’s going on?

Trump will soon propose his desired spending priorities to Congress. Included among them are a $54 increase for military spending, as if we need that, and most agencies, according to unnamed sources, will see cuts to domestic spending.

Final spending decisions will be made by the Republican-led Congress, which may or may not follow Trump’s outline (but more likely will).

Why is it important?

The federal government is nothing without the money it spends. Every agency needs money to carry out its mission. Less money means less ability to enforce federal law. This is one of those bizarre things about having Republicans in control of the government. Trump is going to ask for less money for the various agencies under his authority, presumably because he plans to scale back their operations–quite literally, they will do a lot less enforcing of the law (the President’s job) than in the past. Of course, this is entirely consistent with the Republican agenda to starve the government–or at least, certain parts of it.

Increases to military spending are presumably to support upcoming military adventures in foreign countries. Those are sure to end well.

What can I do?

Once Congress is actually contemplating a budget, that is the time to contact your Senators and Representative and make specific suggestions as to what to support/oppose, for all the good that will do.

When it has become clear what will be cut, keep an eye out for state and local organizations which work toward similar goals and lend them your support. Trump is intent on opening up many gaps in government services, and there is something we can all do to help fill them and minimize their negative impact. I’ll post about such developments as they come to my attention.