President Donald Trump announced a $10 billion War Department investment in materiel production Wednesday, saying the funding is expected to support more than 4,000 defense-industry jobs across Pennsylvania.
Trump made the announcement during keynote remarks at the first Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The two-day event brought together leaders from the finance, defense, and technology industries to discuss military production, innovation, and the defense industrial base.
“We’re here today to celebrate a colossal victory for this commonwealth and for the entire nation,” Trump said before announcing the investment.
According to the Department of War, more than 30 investment announcements came out of the summit. The funding is intended to advance munitions production, shipbuilding, the space industry, artificial intelligence, robotics, and other emerging technologies.
“Pennsylvania workers will build the ships, submarines, trucks, weapons and industries that ensure America remains the strongest and most powerful nation in the history of the world,” Trump said.
Trump also tied the investment to the country’s 250th anniversary and Pennsylvania’s role in American history.
“This year we’re celebrating the 250th anniversary of American freedom, and no state has been more central to protecting that freedom than the commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Trump said. “With today’s announcement, Pennsylvania will play a key role in building the arsenal of freedom to defend our nation in the modern world.”
The War Department describes the “Arsenal of Freedom” tour as a call to strengthen the defense industrial base by expanding American manufacturing and supporting the national workforce.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth launched a multi-week Arsenal of Freedom tour in January. The department said the tour focused on one of its priorities of rebuilding the military through engagement with the defense industrial base at stops across the country.
“It is true to say that there has never been a moment like this, or a stage like this, where innovators, prime contractors, private equity titans of industry, labor leaders [and] defense leaders have come together for this type of moment,” Hegseth said.
“There’s never been a moment like this where the aperture has opened up inside the [War Department] for defense and [for] the second word: innovation,” he added.
Hegseth credited Trump with prioritizing military investment during his second term and described the announcement as a long-term investment in U.S. warfighting capabilities.
“When you talk about the arsenal of freedom, this is only something a ‘builder in chief’ could unleash,” Hegseth said. “In defense, specifically, this is a generational investment in the future of our warfighting capabilities that our country has not seen since Ronald Reagan.”
The War Department compared the administration’s approach to Reagan’s military buildup during the 1980s, which included efforts to expand the Navy, develop nuclear programs, and modernize conventional forces.
Trump and the department are also seeking $1.5 trillion in defense spending under the fiscal year 2027 budget proposal.
“This investment will fundamentally change the battlefield [and] keep the American people [safe] into the future,” Hegseth said.
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