H.R. 1 diminishes transparency around Pentagon and military-related spending and increases it beyond the $1 trillion mark in FY 2026.

The Iraq war was perhaps Dick Cheney's "most lasting, and darkest, legacy," writes CNN's Ben Wedeman, citing Costs of War research on the financial costs of the post-9/11 wars: $8 trillion and counting. www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/m...

Dick Cheney, one of the key architects of the post-9/11 war era, has died. An estimated 3.6-3.8 million people have died indirectly in post-9/11 war zones, bringing the total death toll to at least 4.5-4.7 million and counting.

@christopherleonard.bsky.social reports on the wave of labor unrest that has swept America’s workers in the weapons industry over the past year, citing our research with @quincyinst.bsky.social on Pentagon spending going to military contractors. www.politico.com/news/magazin...

Mamdani spoke of his aunt’s fear after 9/11. Backlash revealed how Islamophobia persists — A recent @salon.com article cites a report from the @costsofwar.bsky.social project that found hate crimes against Muslims increased between 2000 and 2009.

Listen to Costs of War co-founder Neta C. Crawford on Gaza, and how U.S. democracy suffers as a result of long-term militarization.

Costs of War contributor @david-vine.bsky.social on how the Israeli government appears to have orchestrated mass expulsion in Gaza – one of several tools of genocide.

@levernews.com breaks down our latest research with the @stimsoncenter.bsky.social on just what military contractors are getting out of the reconciliation bill, the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act. www.levernews.com/the-emperors...

Listen to Costs of War contributor Linda Bilmes on the billions spent in U.S. post-10/7 military operations, and the trillions spent in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The House of Dynamite production team chose not to seek collaboration with the Pentagon to remain independent. Now the Pentagon is objecting over its depiction of missile defense systems as fallible. The scriptwriter stands behind the depiction. [1/2] www.theguardian.com/film/2025/oc...

Two U.S. administrations proceeded as though they had no leverage against Israel to stop the killing in Gaza. Costs of War contributor and @quincyinst.bsky.social expert William Hartung on why this wasn’t true:

“People will die for years afterwards of things that they wouldn’t have had to die from in Gaza,” says Costs of War co-founder Neta Crawford on the long-term impacts of war.

Ending the displacement of Palestinians as well as the mass killing and destruction of Gaza’s infrastructure are clear requirements for peace, writes Costs of War contributor @david-vine.bsky.social. fpif.org/peace-in-gaz...

U.S. strikes against cartel members are based on the same failed post-9/11 counterterror war paradigm; research shows it not only caused large-scale death and destruction, but was also strategically ineffective. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Military and related spending, including the regular Pentagon budget plus funding provided by H.R. 1, or the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” is over 13 percent higher in FY26 than in FY25 and will primarily benefit military contractors.

NEW: The military spending portion of the reconciliation bill, or H.R. 1 (“One Big Beautiful Bill Act”) will primarily benefit military contractors, according to a new joint brief with the @stimsoncenter.bsky.social. [THREAD]

Starting soon—register here: events.brown.edu/event/320525...

Tomorrow, Costs of War contributors will discuss their new research on two years of the post-10/7 wars. Time: Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 2pm ET. Moderated by @tparsi.bsky.social with the @quincyinst.bsky.social. Register here: events.brown.edu/event/320525...

The U.S. has provided at least $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel since October 7, 2023. This figure excludes arms sales agreements to be paid by the U.S. in the future.

Event: Join Costs of War contributors on their new research on two years of the post-10/7 wars on Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 2pm ET. Moderated by @tparsi.bsky.social of the @quincyinst.bsky.social. events.brown.edu/event/320525...

Displacement in Gaza and the West Bank since Oct. 7, 2023 [THREAD] Nearly all the people living in Gaza—90% or more—have been forcibly displaced. Many have been displaced multiple times.

As a ceasefire begins, NPR cites Costs of War and @quincyinst.bsky.social research on U.S. aid to Israel since October 7, 2023: $21.7 billion. www.npr.org/2025/10/13/g...

The U.S. has provided at least $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel since October 7, 2023. This figure excludes arms sales agreements to be paid by the U.S. in the future.

The top five contracts to major tech firms between 2019 and 2022 had contract ceilings totaling at least $53 billion combined.

Since October 7, 2023, 2,603 people have been killed at humanitarian aid waiting areas and distribution points; 19,034 have been injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. Similar numbers have been reported by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The Human Toll of the Gaza War — New research from @costsofwar.bsky.social finds that U.S. spending in Gaza has surpassed $31 billion, more than 10% of the population has been killed or injured, and displacement across the region has exceeded 5.27 million people. ow.ly/YPIZ50X8Gpv

One out of five traumatic deaths in Gaza between Oct. 2023-July 2025 were children aged 13 and under. [1/2]

Our latest reports on the post-10/7 wars include stunning new estimates on mass displacement in Gaza, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, and the West Bank: 5.27 million displaced 1.8 million are children

BREAKING: The post-10/7 wars have killed or injured at least 236,505 people in Gaza alone. The U.S. has spent over $31 billion and counting in the wider region since Oct. 7, 2023, where millions have been displaced, according to new Costs of War research. [THREAD] Photo Credit: Heidi Levine, 2025

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he wants to lift restrictions on rules of engagement. Our research shows how loosening the rules of engagement in Afghanistan led to many more civilian deaths. [1/2] abcnews.go.com/Politics/pen...

The cost of caring for U.S. veterans from the post-9/11 wars is expected to top $2,000,000,000,000 by 2050.

A snapshot of how the U.S. prioritizes war: In 2024, militarized departments employed 78% of the federal workforce.

Our research illustrates that the post-9/11 wars did not only destroy lives; it expanded the number of militant groups. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/costs-...

A draft bill would allow the Trump administration to "wage war" against people deemed "terrorists", expanding the post-9/11 war playbook. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/19/u...

U.S. policies post-9/11 intensified police militarization, expanded mass surveillance, and have racially profiled Muslims and people of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Arab descent. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/costs/social...

Over 2,500 war-themed movies and TV programs have been made with Pentagon assistance.

Over 1/3 of the $108 billion spent on U.S. contractors in Afghanistan since 9/11 went to undisclosed recipients.

The U.S. post-9/11 wars have forcibly displaced at least 38 million people. This is more than four times the population of Switzerland. [1/3]

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed." -Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1953

Between 2020 and 2024, $771 billion in Pentagon contracts went to just five firms: · Lockheed Martin ($313 billion) · RTX (formerly Raytheon, $145 billion) · Boeing ($115 billion) · General Dynamics ($116 billion) and · Northrop Grumman ($81 billion)

The U.S. military budget has nearly doubled this century, increasing 99% since 2000.

Negotiating with China is the "deceptively simple and logical" way to avoid going to war over Taiwan, notes forthcoming Costs of War contributor Jennifer Kavanagh in the New York Times. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/15/o...

Even though military spending is a worse job-creator than other programs, the federal workforce is dominated by military or military-related positions.

Big, Beautiful trillion dollar war budget! — Responsible Statecraft reported that @costsofwar.bsky.social found America’s post-9/11 wars have cost $8 trillion, killed and displaced hundreds of thousands, and left veterans with widespread physical and psychological injuries.

Global military spending of $2.7 trillion in 2024 was 750 times the 2024 UN regular budget, according to a new UN report. news.un.org/en/story/202...

“If the international community does not step up, an entire generation of children in Gaza will be lost.” Save the Children reports over 20,000 children in Gaza have been killed in the last two years.

As we remember the tragedy of 2,996 killed in the 9/11 attacks, also remember the aftermath: 4.5-4.7 million died in wars the U.S. led or participated in as a response to 9/11. At least 940,000 deaths were due to direct violence; far more died from war’s reverberating effects.

Over 2,200 are reportedly dead and 3,600 injured after an earthquake in Afghanistan. The past 20 years of U.S.-led war worsens the impact of this deadly event. www.reuters.com/business/env...

Between 2012-2015, the Pentagon spent $53 million in U.S. taxpayer money to subsidize various sporting events and promotional campaigns. Read the research: watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/p...

Renaming the DoD to the Department of War accurately reflects the priorities of the federal government, which is overwhelmingly devoted to militarism.