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Donald Trump has announced plans for a $175 billion "golden dome" defence system, which has been slammed as an "endless waste" online.
The president intends to protect the continental United States from foreign projectiles with a huge shield he's dubbed a “Golden Dome for America”.
It’s not the first time a president has spoken about such plans. During Ronald Reagan’s tenure as president more than four decades ago, he discussed plans for a much-derided “Star Wars” ballistic missile barrier.
Speaking on Tuesday (May 20), Trump said: “In the campaign, I promised the American people that I would build a cutting edge missile defense shield to protect our homeland from the threat of foreign missile attack, and that's what we're doing today.”
Trump also said the US had agreed on an “architecture” for a “state of the art system” he promised would “deploy next-generation technologies across the land, sea and space, including space-based sensors and interceptors”.
The president said the system would eventually cost upwards of $175 billion when completed and would be started with an initial $25 billion to be allocated in the “Big Beautiful Bill” reconciliation package currently under debate in the Republican-controlled Congress.
The huge expenditure is coming in for criticism online – with many hitting out at the eye-watering cost, and arguing the money should be spent elsewhere.
"A $25 billion 'down-posit,' which balloons into $175 billion? It reeks of waste, fraud, and abuse to me," one wrote.
"Oh, you want healthcare, clean drinking water, and a working infrastructure for the United States? Go f*** yourself, you get a Golden Dome," another said.
Others poked a little fun at the 'golden dome'.
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