“Invest in America. Educate Americans. Grow the workforce. Build the economy from the bottom up and the middle out, not from the top down.”
– President Joe Biden, 2022 State of the Union address
By Lindsay Koshgarian, National Priorities Project
President Biden called for major new investments in people, communities, and infrastructure in his State of the Union address. But his calls fly in the face of the real spending patterns in this country, where military spending is routinely larger than spending on early childhood education, public K-12 education, job training, housing, public health, and medical and scientific research combined.
Biden has called for many of the things the country desperately needs: more spending on families, early childhood education, housing, public education, home care, and clean energy, among other things, as part of his Build Back Better plan. But his administration seems to have lost its way in promoting those spending priorities after a major setback. Instead of backing off, this is the time to double down.

None of that hesitation has been on display when it comes to military spending. Last year, with plans to end the United States’ longest active war in Afghanistan, the administration called for a $753 billion military budget, higher than the last military budget under President Trump. Congress has so far obliged by meeting that request and adding $25 billion on top, and they are likely to increase the budget still further before the FY 2022 budget is finally set.
Understandably, right now, calls for military spending increases call to mind Russian President Vladimir Putin’s devastating and illegal invasion of Ukraine. Many people in this country share the impulses to help Ukrainians and stand up to a dictator.
Recent Posts
Feeding The Warfare State
July 1, 2025
Take Action Now We Lose, the Weapons Makers WinBy William D. Hartung, Tom Dispatch The Senate is on the verge of passing the distinctly misnamed…
The Rage Of Billionaires And The Frenzy To Stop Zohran Mamdani From Becoming New York’s Mayor
June 30, 2025
Take Action Now The constellation of forces now regrouping with a vengeance includes titans of Wall Street, enormous real estate interests,…
It’s Not Just The Cities. Extreme Heat Is A Growing Threat To Rural America.
June 28, 2025
Take Action Now The urban heat island sits in a rural heat ocean.By Umair Irfan, Vox Summer has officially begun with a blast of scorching…
Mamdani’s Massive Victory Should Show Democrats Where The Party’s Future Lies
June 27, 2025
Take Action Now NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has thrown the drowning Democratic Party a life vest. Will its leaders use it?By Sam…