President Donald Trump has taken to Truth Social to talk up the might of the U.S. military, insisting it has “never been stronger” and that the Department of Defense has never been “hotter” than under Secretary Pete Hegseth’s leadership.
“The United States Military has never been stronger, or more powerful,” the president wrote as he jetted out for a two-day Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey.
“No other Nation can do what we do (It’s not even close!). This year we set even more Historic Recruiting Records, months ahead of schedule. Morale has never been higher. Our Military’s unmatched POWER was on full display during our Celebration of 250 Years of American Independence and, like our Country, the WAR DEPARTMENT has never been ‘HOTTER.’
He continued: “We need to keep it that way, which is why, when Congress returns, we must pass Reconciliation 3.0, with 350 Billion Dollars for Defense, plus THE SAVE AMERICA ACT!
“I am calling on House and Senate Leadership to make this their Number One Priority, and ensure that 350 Billion Dollars in Recon 3.0 moves out of the Budget Committee as soon as Congress is back in session.
“The SAVE AMERICA ACT, which everyone is asking for, paired with the full funding of our Great Department of War, can be passed very quickly, ensuring that the United States of America stays FREE for Generations to come.”
His comments were subsequently reposted on X by Hegseth, echoing the bombast.
Trump’s latest encounter with his fellow Nato leaders comes after he rebuked the alliance’s member states for failing to take a role in his war with Iran, which left the U.S. military’s weapons stockpile heavily depleted, forcing the president to meet with domestic munitions manufacturers to ask them to ramp up production so as not to leave the country vulnerable to attack.
The president’s trip to Turkey might also be awkward as he has recently revived a complaint from his first term about Nato members not meeting their pledge to pay out 2 per cent of their GDP towards the upkeep of the alliance.
In Trump’s other Truth Social posts late Monday, the president appeared to be attempting to project a vision of his power and authority.
He posted a number of video montages documenting his visit to North Dakota last week to open the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, military flypasts from the weekend’s 250th anniversary celebrations and of the $400 million luxury plane gifted to the U.S. by Qatar as a temporary stand-in for Air Force One.
There were also positive press clippings from conservative outlets praising his recent outings, a friendly message from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi supporting closer economic relations between the superpowers and photos of the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and its much-discussed Reflecting Pool all looking ship-shape after his costly recent renovation work to restore them.
He also posted about oil prices dropping and Walmart offering cheaper goods, a belated acknowledgement from the president of the cost of living concerns voters have repeatedly told pollsters they are worried about.
The need to present an image of control and order comes after Trump’s intervention in the FIFA World Cup backfired spectacularly Monday.
The president freely admitted lobbying the international soccer federation’s president Gianni Infantino to review the red card shown to U.S. striker Folarin Balogun against Bosnia-Herzegovina last week, preventing him from taking part in his side’s crucial last-16 clash with Belgium.
FIFA duly obliged by “suspending” Balogun’s one-match ban, allowing him to play, a decision that caused a global backlash and threatened to tarnish the host nation’s entire tournament campaign.
In the end, Balogun did take to the field in Seattle but had little impact as a lacklustre U.S. crashed to a 4-1 defeat, with the Belgian players seemingly mocking Trump’s signature dance and their official Instagram account posting a picture of forward Romelu Lukaku celebrating with the caption: “Overturn this.”
The president has yet to comment on the result but suggested at the White House earlier Monday that he would proclaim the match “rigged like the 2020 election” if the U.S. lost without Balogun.
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