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Welcome to The Hill's Defense & NatSec newsletter{beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security The Big Story Trump’s foreign policy saves taxpayers $320 billion over 4 years: Report President Trump’s foreign policy approach in the second term - hard border security, shifting weapons support to allied-financed purchases, hawkish actions in the Middle East and reforming foreign assistance - will yield over $320 billion in net taxpayer savings over four years, according to a new report from a GOP-linked group. © Getty Images The 72-page analysis from Polaris National Security, which was first shared with The Hill, estimated that a potential second Biden-Harris White House term would have imposed about $512 billion on American taxpayers. The Trump administration invested around $186 billion to restore “deterrence,” including military operations abroad and strong border enforcement - yielding approximately $326 billion in net taxpayer savings over the president’s four-year term or nearly $2,500 per American household, the report said. With the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), the joint U.S. and NATO procurement mechanism to fund and supply Ukraine with U.S.-made weapons, the administration is projected to save taxpayers $258 billion. By eliminating mass parole and lowering the number of illegal immigrants in the U.S. as part of its effort to seal off the U.S.-Mexico border, the administration averted about $158 billion in projected taxpayer costs, according to the analysis. The administration has also largely dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), while some of its functions have been transferred to the State Department. These actions will save taxpayers around $47 billion, the report said. The analysis also stated that by pushing to end the Israel-Hamas war, brokering a U.S.-Houthi ceasefire, bombing Iran’s three nuclear facilities at Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan last year and launching a war against the Islamic Republic earlier this year would end up saving $49 billion. “While a JCPOA 2.0 deal would have handed Tehran up to $640 billion, nominal, over a four-year term, President Trump’s military actions have already imposed the most severe economic blow to the Iranian regime in its history,” the report said. “After only the first two months of Operation Epic Fury, it was estimated the U.S. operation could impose approximately $144 billion in total economic damage on Iran, or 40 percent of its total pre-war GDP.” The U.S. war with Iran has cost consumers over $100 billion in higher energy prices, according to the Iran War Energy Cost Tracker from Brown's Watson School. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress in July that the cost of the U.S.’s conflict with Iran has cost around 37.5 billion. But some experts who spoke with The Hill in July said the cost of the war could be higher than $100 billion. Trump has argued that Americans are willing to endure higher prices to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. “Naysayers who simply tally the operational costs of military operations miss the larger picture: the greatest dividend of strength is the conflict it prevents,” Cale Brown, the chair of Polaris National Security, said in a statement. “By reestablishing deterrence through the use of decisive force on his terms, President Trump is upending costly models of accommodation and appeasement, forestalling larger conflicts and saving American blood and treasure.” Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I’m Filip Timotija — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. Essential Reads How policy will affect defense and national security now and inthe future: US military destroys 5 Iranian oil tankers The U.S. military destroyed five Iranian oil tankers linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Tuesday in response to attempted Iranian missile launches at U.S. Navy warships, the U.S. Central Command (Centcom) announced. The U.S. forces disabled IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Kaviz, M/T Charminar, M/T Horizon 1 and M/T Riesco in the Gulf of Oman, along with M/T Derya near Kharg Island, an island located in the northern … Full Story National Guard member arrested in DC, accused of pulling gun in argument over hairstyles A National Guard member was arrested last week, accused of pointing a gun at a fellow guard member in late August, an arrest affidavit shows. Zion Mitchell, 21, of Georgia, is facing felony charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm while committing a crime of violence or dangerous crime, according to the affidavit filed in District of Columbia Superior Court. As of Friday, Mitchell was being held … Full Story Veterans group launches new campaign against Trump’s planned arch VoteVets, the largest Democratic veterans group in the U.S., on Tuesday launched a new messaging campaign against President Trump’s planned arch across from Arlington National Cemetery. Paul Eaton, a retired major general and VoteVets adviser, argued in a video posted to social media that the project is “entirely inappropriate and borders on sacrilege to the men and women buried” there to break the line of sight between … Full Story Russia resumes strikes on Kyiv after pause for US envoys’ visit Russia resumed strikes on Kyiv and across Ukraine early on Tuesday following a pause in attacks that allowed President Trump’s top envoys for peace negotiations to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the country’s capital. The Ukrainian military downed 175 aerial targets, the Ministry of Defense said, but added that ballistic missiles hit homes in Kyiv, a market in Odesa and a train in the Sumy region. “The russians … Full Story In Other News Branch out with a different read from The Hill: DHS asks Supreme Court to reinstate overhauled immigration tool for midterms The Trump administration urged the Supreme Court on Tuesday to restore the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) overhauled immigration verification system in time for the midterm elections. “The district court has issued an indefensible order that threatens the integrity of upcoming elections,” … Full Story On Tap Tomorrow Events in and around the defense world: The Council on Foreign Relations will hold a discussion tomorrow at 1 a.m. ET on "China’s Influence in the Americas." The Center for Strategic and International Studies will hold a discussion tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. ET on "Space Launch Capacity and Contenders." The Henry L. Stimson Center will hold a discussion tomorrow at 4:30 p.m. ET on "A Vision for the Future of Multilateralism: A Conversation with María Fernanda Espinosa." What We’re Reading News we’ve flagged from other outlets: Judge rules West Point policy restricting professors’ speech is unconstitutional, The Washington Post reports. EXCLUSIVE: Trump Slashes Bureaucratic Backlog Keeping Veterans From Their Benefits, The Daily Caller reports. House Rebukes Navy for Refusing to Investigate Pilot Brain Injury, The New York Times reports. Military and intelligence officials discuss smaller presence in the Middle East as US looks for another post-9/11 strategy, CNN reports. Air Force Base to Allow Religious Greetings After Hegseth Vowed to Intervene, NOTUS reports. Trending Today Two key stories on The Hill right now: Congress needs a plan to remove incapable lawmakers who refuse to step down Democracy requires that voters choose the people who represent them. But it also requires that the people charged with that responsibility must be … Read more Kavanaugh won’t revive Missouri’s GOP-friendly congressional map for midterms Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on Tuesday refused to restore Missouri’s new congressional map, which was poised to give Republicans a pickup … Read more Opinions in The Hill Op-eds related to defense & national security submitted to The Hill: Iran is no Vietnam, but Trump is mimicking Lyndon Johnson’s failed approachAmerica must focus on its strategic military priorities The Pentagon’s new nuclear doctrine needs congressional guardrails You’re all caught up. See you tomorrow! [sailthru_widget name="Sailthru Widget Block" sailthru_list="Defense and National Security" title="Defense & National Security"]document fetched 2026-09-09 12:07 · canonical https://thehill.com/newsletters/defense-national-security/6077894-trump-foreign-policy-saves-taxpayers