The ongoing conflict with Iran could cost U.S. taxpayers over $1 trillion, according to Linda Bilmes, a Harvard Kennedy School public policy lecturer. This figure dwarfs initial projections, which estimated daily spending at $1 billion. The Pentagon reported that the first week of the war alone cost $11.3 billion, a rate that would push total spending past $35 billion by April 1.
Hidden Costs of War
Bilmes, author of The Ghost Budget: Paying for America’s 9/11 Wars, argues that the true cost of war extends beyond direct military expenses. She highlights the long-term financial burdens, including replacing munitions and rebuilding infrastructure destroyed in combat. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) estimates that damage to U.S. military sites in the Gulf could cost $800 billion within the first two weeks of the conflict.
"Wars always have a long tail of costs," Bilmes stated. "Wars cost more than we expect, take longer than we expect, and some costs are very consequential."
Impact on American Workers
The financial burden of the war will inevitably fall on American households. Economists at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) calculated that the first month of the conflict cost each U.S. household $260, a seemingly small amount that accumulates across 150 million taxpaying households. Additionally, rising production costs for munitions, exacerbated by tariffs and supply chain disruptions, could further strain the U.S. economy.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that the conflict could end "very soon," but the Pentagon recently requested $200 billion in additional funding for efforts in Iran. Bilmes warns that underestimating the cost of war, as the U.S. did during the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, could exacerbate America’s $39 trillion debt. The ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz continues to escalate tensions, leaving the financial toll of the conflict uncertain.