Statement by Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs 

Speaking at Pentagon Accountability Groups to Demand Pentagon Budget Cuts
June 2, 2026 

Hello, I’m Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director of the Coalition on Human Needs, and I’m here to talk about national security. The nearly $1.5 trillion dollars proposed for the military by the Trump administration will make us less secure, both because it is unaccompanied by a rational plan and placed in the hands of reckless officials, and because its stupendous cost would come at the expense of actual investments in our security – affordable health insurance, food, housing, and energy, to name a few essentials. 

 We already have a trillion-dollar Pentagon budget that has never passed an audit, awash in funds lavished on military contractors to make high cost weapons and systems, many vulnerable to far less expensive drones.  Another half-trillion dollars, for the vanity project Trump class battleships, for the so-called “Golden Dome” pretend shield with a down payment of $17.5 billion, only a tiny fraction of what it will eventually cost, while its threats to other nations will make us less safe, as will the many other paralyzingly expensive planes, missiles and ships we are expected to deepen our debt to build. 

What would actually increase our nation’s security?  More people with affordable health insurance would protect them from debilitating sickness.  But this administration has both slashed Medicaid and refused to maintain subsidies through the Affordable Care Act.  These failures are already causing between 4.8 and 5.8 million people to lose their ACA health insurance, and that number will continue to climb.  Those struggling to keep their marketplace insurance have seen their premiums rise 58 percent, from $113 to $178 a month, on average.  And that’s just the start – the administration just yesterday announced its new red tape requirements for Medicaid, requiring people to document their work or exemptions from work, estimated to cause millions of people to lose coverage because of paperwork problems. 

Also less secure are the 3.5 million people who have lost SNAP nutrition assistance since last July’s enactment of the Big Brutal megabill, a shocking 9 percent reduction.  Many states have been quick to make their SNAP programs more restrictive, since they know they are facing big increased costs because of the megabill.  The 12 states that have current SNAP data by age show a massive drop of 700,000 children.  That loss of food at a time of rising food prices means families are far less secure. 

Our people are also less secure because it is harder to afford rent.  Almost half of all U.S. workers earn less than the $28.17 hourly wage required to afford a modest one-bedroom unit, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition.  The Trump budget would make things worse, proposing reductions in rental vouchers and would turn formerly homeless people out of permanent housing that has been for them the essence of security. 

Last month, according to Conference Board data, two-thirds  of consumers have reported cutting back on spending because of higher costs. Those higher costs have been driven by the strut and bluster recklessness of this administration’s use of its military might.  They should not be entrusted with more. 

The Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) is an alliance of national organizations working together to promote public policies which address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable populations. 

The Coalition’s members include civil rights, religious, labor, and professional organizations, service providers and those concerned with the well being of children, women, the elderly, and people with disabilities. 

Speakers at this press briefing included: 
* Rep. Sara Jacobs (CA-51), Member of House Committee on Armed Services, New Democrat Coalition, Congressional Progressive Caucus 
* Rob Weissman, Co-President, Public Citizen 
* Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs 
* Virginia Burger, Senior Defense Policy Analyst, Project on Government Oversight & Marine Corps Veteran 
* Moderated by Mac Hamilton, ReThink Media