Trump wants to halve State Dept budget

WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump's administration wants to slash the State Department budget by about half, according to internal planning documents, a reduction that could see nearly 30 US missions shut and steep cuts to foreign aid.

The proposed cuts of nearly $30 billion in fiscal 2026 are outlined in a so-called Passback, the response by the White House budget office — the Office of Management and Budget, or OMB — to State Department funding requests for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins on Oct 1.

While the department can request revisions, one US official said the final version likely will be changed only "a tad" before it is submitted for approval to Congress, where "the chances are high" that some funds will be restored.