Trump Administration Proposes “Golden Fleet” of Nuclear-Powered Battleships

The administration has announced a plan to construct a new class of 15 nuclear-powered battleships, dubbed the “Golden Fleet.” The ships would be the first U.S. battleships built since the last were completed in 1944 and decommissioned in the early 1990s. President Donald Trump has argued that the fleet would preserve American military supremacy, revitalize the domestic shipbuilding sector, and deter adversaries.

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The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that building the 15 vessels would cost roughly $275 billion in current dollars through 2056—about 50 % higher than earlier projections. According to the CBO, the annual budget required for large surface combatants would climb from about $11 billion to $19 billion, a rise of slightly more than two-thirds. The agency also notes that the plan would increase the tonnage of large surface combatants by 60 % while reducing the tonnage of smaller surface combatants by about 40 %, posing a potential challenge for the shipbuilding industry to scale up production.

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The administration presents the fleet as a strategic asset that complements modern naval concepts.

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Democratic lawmakers, including Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member Jeff Merkley of Oregon, have warned that the proposal would divert billions from social programs at a time when families face rising costs for groceries, gas, healthcare, and childcare. Defense analysts and budget watchdogs describe the battleships as the most expensive warships ever produced and question their relevance given that all previous U.S. battleships have been retired.

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Mark Cancian of the Center for Strategic and International Studies argues that the ships reflect an outdated naval doctrine, emphasizing concentrated firepower over the Navy’s current focus on “distributed maritime operations” that rely on numerous smaller, networked vessels. Bernard Loo, a senior fellow at Singapore’s Rajaratnam School of International Studies, has called the proposed vessels “bomb magnets,” suggesting they would present high-value targets for adversaries.

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If pursued, the Golden Fleet could reshape the Navy’s force structure, increase long-term defense spending, and place significant demands on U.S. shipyards. Critics contend that the high cost and perceived obsolescence of battleships may outweigh any strategic benefits, while supporters view the program as a symbolic and practical boost to national defense and industrial capacity.

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