Funding for the future US Navy Trump-class battleship sparks controversy in Congress
The class is planned to consist of a lead ship, USS Defiant (BBG-1), and another vessel. (Photo: US Navy)
Lawmakers question the US Navy’s proposed $2 billion investment in the Trump-class battleship as concerns over cost, technology maturity and operational relevance fuel growing bipartisan scrutiny on Capitol Hill.
The nearly US$2 billion the US Navy (USN) has requested in the next fiscal year to fund the procurement and R&D efforts for the lead vessel of Trump-class battleships (USS Defiant) is generating pushback in the US Congress, which could impact future investments in the programme.
Several lawmakers have been openly criticising the investment in a non-mature capability and claiming that the future platforms are not appropriate for the distributed operations concept the branch has been adopting.
During the House Appropriations Committee Markup of the FY2027 Defence Bill, on 24 June, the Democrat Representative for Connecticut, Rosa DeLauro, stated that
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