WASHINGTON, DC — The Trump administration can strengthen U.S. national security and save taxpayer funds by cutting at least $60 billion in Pentagon waste and inefficiencies, according to a report released today by The Quincy Institute, Stimson Center, and Taxpayers for Common Sense.

“President Trump’s stated commitments to rein in waste and inefficiency in federal spending and strengthen national security are not at odds, in fact they are mutually reinforcing,” said Gabe Murphy of Taxpayers for Common Sense, who co-authored the report with William Hartung of the Quincy Institute and Julia Gledhill of the Stimson Center. “Targeted Pentagon spending cuts can not only save taxpayers tens of billions of dollars per year, they can also sharpen America’s military by keeping it focused on the strategies and programs that work,” said Hartung.

“Our report provides a road map for achieving efficiency by eliminating dysfunctional weapons systems and outmoded business practices. The result will be more security at a lower cost,” said Hartung.

The report, Keys to Developing a More Efficient, Effective Defense at a Lower Cost, details four main categories of Pentagon spending cuts that the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a department created to reduce waste and inefficiency in government spending, should consider:

1. Cancelling or reducing spending on dysfunctional or unnecessary weapons systems.
2. Making process changes that will encourage greater spending discipline.
3. Reducing bureaucracy, including both government personnel and the department’s hundreds of thousands of private contract employees.
4. Cutting excess basing infrastructure.

“Ignoring Pentagon waste is fiscally irresponsible and damaging to U.S. national security. We outline opportunities for the Trump administration to cut pork from the Pentagon budget and advance cheaper, more effective national security policy,” said Gledhill.

The authors find that $12 billion or more per year could be saved by halting the F-35 combat aircraft program, as well as $3.7 billion or more per year by cutting the Sentinel Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) program. They also determine that a 15% cut in bureaucratic spending would save $26 billion per year, in addition to $3-5 billion in annual savings from the targeted closures and realignments of U.S. military bases, identified currently at a 19% excess capacity.

“Defunding weapons that are overpriced, underperforming, and out of step with current missions, like the F-35 combat aircraft and the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile, would allow us to invest more in real priorities while also tackling the nation’s tremendous debt,” said Murphy. “With interest payments on that debt now surpassing military spending, something has to give.”

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Taxpayers for Common Sense is a non-partisan budget watchdog serving as an independent voice for American taxpayers. The organization’s mission is to ensure that the federal government spends taxpayer dollars responsibly and operates within its means.

The Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft believes that efforts to maintain unilateral U.S. dominance around the world through coercive force are neither possible nor desirable. A transpartisan, action-oriented research institution, QI promotes ideas that move U.S. foreign policy away from endless war and towards vigorous diplomacy in pursuit of international peace.

The Stimson Center promotes international security and shared prosperity through applied research and independent analysis, global engagement, and policy innovation. For three decades, Stimson has been a leading voice on urgent global issues. Founded in the twilight years of the Cold War, the Stimson Center pioneered practical new steps toward stability and security in an uncertain world. Today, as changes in power and technology usher in a challenging new era, Stimson is at the forefront: Engaging new voices, generating innovative ideas and analysis, and building solutions to promote international security, prosperity, and justice.