President Trump declared victory Tuesday in the spending deal, saying a boost in military spending reversed years of cuts and sent a message to the world about U.S. resolve.
“This is what winning looks like,” said Mr. Trump, who bristled at Democrats’ claims of besting him at the negotiating table.
Amid widespread criticism that he gave in to too many Democratic demands, Mr. Trump said the spending victory “flew under the radar” and that delivering on his promise of a military buildup was a game-changer.
“We are at last reversing years of military cuts and showing our determination and resolve to the entire world. And believe me, the entire world is watching, and we have resolve like never ever before,” he said.
“We are taking care of our military,” Mr. Trump said.
He said the deal delivered an extra $15 billion to begin rebuilding the military while ending the longtime practice of providing an equal increase in nondefense spending, a demand for “parity” that Democrats have won for years.
“We did so without having to put in place an equal increase in nondefense spending, breaking the so-called parity rule that was breaking our budget and degrading our military — and that’s not happening any more. I can tell you that with [assurance].”
He made the remarks while presenting the Commander-in-Chief trophy to the U.S. Air Force Academy football team, which he said also “flew under the radar” to victory.
“This week the Republican team had its own victory under the radar — that is a very important thing for the men and women of the United States military and it is a very important thing for the people of our country,” he said at the ceremony in the Rose Garden.
He said another victory was getting a $1.5 billion increase for the Department of Homeland Security, which he said was a down payment on building a wall on the border with Mexico.
He said Democrats “forgot” to mention that it was the biggest increase in border security funds in a decade.
Mr. Trump ticked off the wins he scored in the deal: providing health care benefits to miners, extending a D.C. school choice program and not making crucial Obamacare payments to insurance companies.
The president did agreed to continue “unauthorized” Obamacare payments in order to get the deal. That issue, however, could be resolved in the pending bill to repeal and replace the health care law.
“After years of partisan bickering and gridlock, this bill is a clear win for the American people,” Mr. Trump said.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
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