DAILY TRIFECTA: The War Business Is Making A Killing
Who's says America doesn't make anything?
THE SET-UP: Donald Trump is really good for business. No, not for agriculture. Agriculture is in crisis. And no, not for retail. In fact, his tariffs might mean a lump of “beautiful, clean coal” is the only "stocking stuffer” shoppers will find on the shelves come Christmas time. He’s not great for the oil business, either. Economic pessimism is driving the price per barrel below the “break-even” price and, therefore, his trade war is dissuading companies from drilling, baby, drilling. He’s bad for tourism, too.
But Trump is good for the one industry the US still dominates—the war business. In fact, he’s committed to “rebuilding” a military he “rebuilt” during his first stint in the White House. So, maybe he’s “re-rebuilding” the military? It’s all part of his “peace through strength” doctrine … which is really the Reagan Doctrine … which is really just a snappy, Orwellian euphemism for preserving a world-dwarfing military advantage and retaining the right to use that advantage to bomb anyone, anywhere, for any reason. It’s an advantage demonstrated by this graph:
Deutsche Welle based their graph on this year’s assessment of global military spending by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Spoiler Alert: It was record-setting year for the booming business of blowing-up things and killing people. And Trump is doing his part by blowing-up things and killing people in Yemen. So much so, that some observers in and out of the Pentagon are concerned that he’s depleting Uncle Sam’s stockpile of munitions.
Really, the reason why the US is perpetually “rebuilding” its military is because the US keeps on using its military. And despite a long-standing advantage in military strength, it hasn’t quite translated into much peace. To the contrary, the first quarter of the 21st Century has shown us that asymmetrical strength emboldens the strong to pick on the weak … even when (or because?) the weak poses no threatIf Iraq is any indication, overwhelming strength may an impetus to use it. It certainly generated a lot of extra business for the defense industry.
And as for those long-awaited savings from DOGE taking its chainsaw to the Pentagon’s infamous penchant for waste, fraud and abuse?
Musk’s chainsaw has been mothballed in favor of a golden opportunity to weaponize his satellites. - jp
TITLE: SIPRI Fact Sheet April 2024: Trends in world military expenditure, 2024
https://reliefweb.int/report/world/sipri-fact-sheet-april-2024-trends-world-military-expenditure-2024-encasv
EXCERPTS: World military expenditure reached $2718 billion in 2024, an increase of 9.4 per cent in real terms from 2023 and the steepest year-on-year rise since at least the end of the cold war. Military spending increased in all world regions, with particularly rapid growth in both Europe and the Middle East. The top five military spenders—the United States, China, Russia, Germany and India—accounted for 60 per cent of the global total, with combined spending of $1635 billion, according to new data published today by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), available at www.sipri.org.
Military spending in Europe (including Russia) rose by 17 per cent to $693 billion and was the main contributor to the global increase in 2024. With the war in Ukraine in its third year, military expenditure kept rising across the continent, pushing European military spending beyond the level recorded at the end of the cold war. All European countries increased their military spending in 2024 except Malta.
Russia’s military expenditure reached an estimated $149 billion in 2024, a 38 per cent increase from 2023 and double the level in 2015. This represented 7.1 per cent of Russia’s GDP and 19 per cent of all Russian government spending. Ukraine’s total military expenditure grew by 2.9 per cent to reach $64.7 billion—equivalent to 43 per cent of Russia’s spending. At 34 per cent of GDP, Ukraine had the largest military burden of any country in 2024.
Several countries in Central and Western Europe saw unprecedented rises in their military expenditure in 2024 as they implemented new spending pledges and large-scale procurement plans. Germany’s military expenditure increased by 28 per cent to reach $88.5 billion, making it the biggest spender in Central and Western Europe and the fourth biggest in the world. Poland’s military spending grew by 31 per cent to $38.0 billion in 2024, representing 4.2 per cent of Poland’s GDP.
Military spending by the USA rose by 5.7 per cent to reach $997 billion, which was 66 per cent of total NATO spending and 37 per cent of world military spending in 2024. A significant portion of the US budget for 2024 was dedicated to modernizing military capabilities and the US nuclear arsenal in order to maintain a strategic advantage over Russia and China. European NATO members spent $454 billion in total, representing 30 per cent of total spending across the alliance.
Israel’s military expenditure surged by 65 per cent to $46.5 billion in 2024, the steepest annual increase since the Six-Day War in 1967, as it continued to wage war in Gaza and escalated conflict with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Its military burden rose to 8.8 per cent of GDP, the second highest in the world. Lebanon’s military spending rose by 58 per cent in 2024 to $635 million, after several years of lower spending due to economic crisis and political turmoil.
Iran’s military spending fell by 10 per cent in real terms to $7.9 billion in 2024 despite its involvement in regional conflicts and its support for regional proxies. The impact of sanctions on Iran severely limited its capacity to increase spending.
China, the world’s second largest military spender, increased its military expenditure by 7.0 per cent to an estimated $314 billion, marking three decades of consecutive growth. China accounted for 50 per cent of all military spending in Asia and Oceania, investing in the continued modernization of its military and expansion of its cyberwarfare capabilities and nuclear arsenal.
Japan’s military spending rose by 21 per cent to $55.3 billion in 2024, the largest annual increase since 1952. Its military burden reached 1.4 per cent of GDP, the highest since 1958. India’s military expenditure, the fifth largest globally, grew by 1.6 per cent to $86.1 billion. Spending by Taiwan grew by 1.8 per cent in 2024 to reach $16.5 billion.
Other notable developments
· In 2024 the United Kingdom increased its military expenditure by 2.8 per cent to reach $81.8 billion, making it the sixth biggest spender worldwide. Military expenditure by France rose by 6.1 per cent to reach $64.7 billion, making it the ninth biggest spender.
· Sweden increased its military expenditure by 34 per cent in 2024, to $12.0 billion. In its first year of NATO membership, Sweden’s military burden reached 2.0 per cent of GDP.
· Saudi Arabia was the largest military spender in the Middle East in 2024 and the seventh largest worldwide. Its military spending saw a modest increase of 1.5 per cent, reaching an estimated $80.3 billion, but still 20 per cent lower than in 2015 when the country’s oil revenues peaked.
· Military spending by Myanmar surged by 66 per cent in 2024 to an estimated $5.0 billion—the highest rate of increase in Asia and Oceania—as internal conflicts intensified.
· Mexico’s military spending rose by 39 per cent to $16.7 billion in 2024, primarily due to increased funding for the National Guard and the navy, which are involved in the government’s militarized response to organized crime.
· Military expenditure in Africa totalled $52.1 billion in 2024, a 3.0 per cent increase from 2023 and 11 per cent higher than in 2015.
TITLE: 'Glaring Example of Misplaced Priorities': GOP Unveils Plan to Give $150 Billion More to Pentagon
https://www.commondreams.org/news/republicans-pentagon-budget
EXCERPTS: Congressional Republicans on Sunday released legislation that would pump an additional $150 billion into the Pentagon—a morass of waste and profiteering—over the next decade as part of a sweeping reconciliation package that's also expected to include deep cuts to Medicaid and tax breaks for the wealthy.
The House Armed Services Committee, a major target of weapons industry lobbying, unveiled the plan for what it called "a historic investment of $150 billion to restore America's military capabilities and strengthen our national defense." The panel said the legislation was developed "in close conjunction" with Senate Republicans and President Donald Trump, who is separately pursuing a $1 trillion U.S. military budget for the next fiscal year.
The legislation would direct the new Pentagon funding toward a number of initiatives backed by the president, including a "Golden Dome" missile defense system that experts have called a massive boondoggle that could benefit Elon Musk.
TITLE: Silicon Valley Joins Race to Build Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ Missile Defense System
https://techstory.in/silicon-valley-joins-race-to-build-trumps-golden-dome-missile-defense-system/
EXCERPTS: Elon Musk’s SpaceX is teaming up with software giant Palantir and defense innovator Anduril to bid for a central role in President Donald Trump’s ambitious missile defense project, known as the “Golden Dome.” The proposed system would create a vast satellite network capable of detecting and tracking enemy missiles worldwide—potentially transforming how the U.S. responds to airborne threats.
The Golden Dome initiative stems from Trump’s January executive order, which labels a missile attack as “the most catastrophic threat facing the United States.” In response, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was instructed to craft a cutting-edge missile shield modeled after Israel’s Iron Dome—this time, scaled for global protection.
The Pentagon has since received proposals from more than 180 companies, both from legacy defense contractors and a growing number of tech-focused startups. While firms like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Northrop Grumman are expected to secure key roles, new players like SpaceX, Palantir, and Anduril are now competing fiercely for a piece of the action.
One of the more unconventional elements of SpaceX’s bid is its business model. Instead of selling the system outright, SpaceX has proposed a subscription-based service in which the U.S. government pays for access to the satellite network. This approach could allow for quicker deployment by avoiding lengthy procurement processes, but it has also raised red flags.
Pentagon officials have expressed concern that the government could lose control over pricing and upgrades, locking itself into a long-term, potentially expensive agreement. Some insiders also noted that Musk’s influence as a presidential adviser might be giving his companies unusual sway in the bidding process.
A memo from Defense Secretary Hegseth urged Pentagon leaders to fast-track proposals, setting aggressive targets for deploying capabilities starting in 2026, with full rollout beyond 2030. That timeline could favor companies like SpaceX, which already has the hardware, personnel, and launch capacity in place.
Despite early traction, nothing is set in stone. The selection process remains fluid, and the ultimate composition of the Golden Dome system could shift dramatically. Traditional defense firms still have deep influence, established relationships, and proven systems that could win out in the long run.
Still, if Musk’s group succeeds, it would mark a seismic shift in the defense landscape—placing Silicon Valley’s rising tech empires in direct competition with long-standing military contractors.
One insider summed it up: “This isn’t just about winning a contract. It’s about who shapes the future of American defense—traditional players or tech disruptors. And that answer is still very much up in the air.”
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Weapons of war are launching from Cape Canaveral for the first time since 1988
https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/04/weapons-of-war-are-launching-from-cape-canaveral-for-the-first-time-since-1988/