Donald Trump spent a decade in politics touting no more pointless foreign wars, a laser focus on cutting wasteful spending at home, and prioritizing bringing good-paying jobs back to America. Voters took him at his word, but they shouldn’t have.
After taking a chainsaw to programs that working families depend on, Trump started a war of choice with Iran that is costing taxpayers $1 billion every single day.
That’s not a typo, it’s a fact.
While American families spent the last two weeks doing the math on rent, groceries, health care, and utility bills, the Trump administration was writing a billion-dollar check with their tax money. But that money isn’t going to address the important crises at home, but instead to fund a conflict that has sent gas prices, food prices, and economic uncertainty through the roof.
Here’s what $1 billion a day could do for the American people instead:
- Health care subsidies for 1.9 million Americans, the same subsidies Republicans refused to fully fund, leaving millions at risk of losing coverage.
- Food assistance for 5.7 million families in need, the same families receiving fewer resources due to Republican cuts.
- Child care for more than 1.2 million children, instead of steep cuts to child care resources as Trump’s FY2026 budget proposes.
- Disability benefits for nearly 500,000 veterans who earned every cent, instead of freezing and downsizing services like Trump has allowed over the past year.
This choice tells you everything about who MAGA Republicans are and who they actually serve.
Trump promised he would never start a war like this. He lied. He promised relief for working Americans. It never came. And the same party that told us the country couldn’t afford food for poor children or health care for the elderly is spending billions on a military conflict with no end in sight.
“The administration that promised to put America First is spending a billion dollars a day on a war no one wanted, and is planning to ask Congress for another $200 billion, while millions of Americans struggle to afford the basics,” said American Bridge 21st Century spokesperson Brandon Weathersby. “Republicans lied to the everyday Americans who put them in office about what they would prioritize. It’s time to make sure they answer for it at the ballot box.”
Published: Mar 19, 2026