Top Trump economist: Reinvestment needed to make 'ourselves a military power once again'

In late January, the Washington Post reported, "President Trump signed an executive order...to launch what he called a 'great rebuilding of the Armed Forces' that is expected to include new ships, planes and weapons and the modernization of the U.S. nuclear arsenal."

In an interview on Sunday, Trump's chief economic adviser also advocated for increased spending on the U.S. military.

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Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council, made the comments during an appearance on Fox News after he was asked about the administration's forthcoming budget which host Chris Wallace said is expected to have a "$54 billion increase in defense spending, to be offset by equal cuts in domestic spending."

Cohn responded by saying, in part, "Over the last two or three weeks, President Trump has had in all of the generals of the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Marines, and he — they have talked to him about our preparedness and our readiness. And it's disappointing to hear what these general say we are."

He added, "We have underinvested in our military over the last eight years. Our military budget has been subject to sequester."

Cohn then said, "Unfortunately, we have no alternative but to reinvest in our military and make ourselves a military power once again. If you're doing that in an area where you have to balance the budget and you cannot create a further deficit, you have to make cuts."

According to Wallace, the agencies that may face declines in funding under the proposed budget include the Environmental Protection Agency, the Transportation Security Administration, and the State Department.

The Washington Examiner adds that "Proposed cuts to agencies like the Department of Housing and Urban Development have led congressional Democrats to raise alarms about the domestic effects and to criticize the Trump administration."