To Shift Funds From 'Endless Wars' to 'Human Needs,' Sanders Unveils Amendment to Slash Pentagon Budget by $74 Billion

With the Senate preparing to vote on an annual defense policy bill calling for $740.5 billion in military spending for fiscal year 2021, Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday delivered a floor speech in support of his new amendment aiming to cut the proposed Pentagon budget by 10%—around $74 billion—and devote those resources to funding healthcare, housing, jobs, and education in impoverished U.S. communities.

"At this pivotal moment in American history, we have to make a fundamental decision," Sanders said on the Senate floor. "Do we want to spend billions more on endless wars in the Middle East, or do we want to provide decent jobs to millions of unemployed Americans here at home? Do we want to spend more money on nuclear weapons or do we want to invest in decent jobs and childcare and healthcare for the American people most in need?"

"Why do we spend more on the military than the next 11 nations combined? I have a better idea: Cut Pentagon spending by 10% and invest it in the fight to end homelessness, hunger, and poverty in the richest country on Earth." 
—Sen. Bernie Sanders

Sanders' amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)—which the Vermont senator filed Thursday alongside Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.)—would take $74 billion in Pentagon savings and "create a federal grant program to fund healthcare, housing, childcare, and educational opportunities for cities and towns experiencing a poverty rate of 25% or more," according to a summary released by Sanders' office.

740 billion..74 billion...