Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will meet Monday with the "Gang of Eight," the top Republicans and Democrats on the Armed Services and Appropriations committees, to discuss the Pentagon's proposed $1.5 trillion budget, Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., told The Hill.
President Donald Trump's request to increase the budget is the largest in decades, reflecting his emphasis on U.S. military investments over domestic programs.
The sizable increase for the Pentagon, about 44%, had been telegraphed by the president even before the U.S.-led war against Iran. Trump's plan would also reduce spending on non-defense programs by 10%.
Smith, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, told The Hill the figure is too high and unrealistic.
"It's way too bloated. With all the tax cuts connected to it, it's a fiscal catastrophe, and we don't have any clear details of where that money is going to go," he said.
"We're pushing $40 trillion in debt, running a trillion-dollar deficit. We're going to have to figure out how to meet our national defense needs without simply spending money wildly in this 50 to 60 percent increase in the defense budget. That's just not realistic in this fiscal environment, in my opinion."
Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., and Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., described the $1.5 trillion top line as "historic."
"This bold commitment provides the resources needed to rebuild American military capability and confront those challenges head-on," they said in a joint statement.
Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, supports increasing defense funding overall but said he's wary of using a special legislative shortcut (called budget reconciliation) to push through big chunks of military money.
"Budget reconciliation, for its part, can only supplement — not replace — the consistent demand signals necessary to secure the private sector investments necessary to adequately expand and modernize our defense industrial base," McConnell said, according to Stars and Stripes. "Regular order appropriations are the right way to meet the scale and scope of the requirements of our military."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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