Trump Seeks 5 Pc Budgetary Cuts from Cabinet

Washington, Oct 17 (PTI) US President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked all his Cabinet colleagues to cut their budgets by five per cent as he seeks to bolster the country's military expenses.

"I can tell you that I'm having a Cabinet meeting in a little while and we're going to ask every secretary to cut five per cent for next year," Trump told reporters at his Oval Office just before the Cabinet meeting, wherein he reiterated it again.

However, this five per cent cut does not include the defence department, wherein in the first two years of his administration he has increased its budget to USD 700 billion and USD 716 billion.

To a question during the Cabinet meeting, Trump said he is seeking to bring the military expenses to USD 700 billion.

"Last year, first year, I had to do something with the military. Military was falling apart, it was depleted, it was in very bad shape. And that's why we went, for two years, USD 700 billion, USD 716 billion," he said.

"That took place over a period of two years. We have repurchased and purchased jets, missiles, rockets, all forms of military equipment, ships, submarines. We have rebuilt and are in the process of rebuilding our military to a level that it's never been before. I had to do that," he said.

"In order to get the USD 700 billion and the USD 716 billion -- those numbers have never been heard of before -- I had to give the Democrats, I call it, waste money, things that I would never have approved, but we had to do that in order to get the votes, because we don't have enough Republican votes to do this without them," Trump said.

"We are going to be asking for a five per cent cut from every secretary today," said the president.

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