India, April 4 -- The White House's latest budget proposal lays bare a stark and deeply polarizing vision of American priorities: a federal workforce facing stagnating wages at home, even as military spending surges to historic levels amid an intensifying US-backed conflict with Iran.

The fiscal 2027 proposal includes a record-breaking $1.5 trillion allocation for defense, the largest in modern US history, even as officials confirmed there is no provision for a pay raise for civilian federal employees.

The omission is not a technical oversight. It effectively signals a pay freeze unless Congress intervenes later in the year, a move that has triggered alarm across the federal workforce.

At the same time, the administration is proposing ...