Senate appropriators seek $850 billion for defense, largest total of 4 key committees

Senate appropriators seek $850 billion for defense, largest total of 4 key committees
Senate appropriators seek $850 billion for defense, largest total of 4 key committees

The figure is well beyond the $773 billion requested by the White House, as senators say they’re battling inflation and accounting for troop pay raise and competition from Russia and China.

Will Trump’s Wall Mean a Delay in Defense Funding?

Will Trump’s Wall Mean a Delay in Defense Funding?
Will Trump’s Wall Mean a Delay in Defense Funding?

Senate Republicans and Democrats remain far apart on using DoD money for the border wall — so far that the government might not gets its 2020 budget on time,

GOP & Dems Fight Trump To Stop $8B Saudi, UAE Arms Deals

GOP & Dems Fight Trump To Stop $8B Saudi, UAE Arms Deals
GOP & Dems Fight Trump To Stop $8B Saudi, UAE Arms Deals

A key Trump ally, Sen. Lindsay Graham, bucks the White House on its proposed $8 billion arms sale.

Wait For Commission Before Cutting Guard, Gen. Grass Tells SAC-D

Wait For Commission Before Cutting Guard, Gen. Grass Tells SAC-D
Wait For Commission Before Cutting Guard, Gen. Grass Tells SAC-D

CAPITOL HILL: It’s not every day you hear a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asking Congress to undo part of the administration’s budget proposal. But National Guard Bureau director Gen. Frank Grass is in a unique position, the only chief caught between the Pentagon and the states. So this morning, Gen. Grass explicitly…

HASC Gives Guard Half A Loaf; Will SASC Provide The Rest?

HASC Gives Guard Half A Loaf; Will SASC Provide The Rest?
HASC Gives Guard Half A Loaf; Will SASC Provide The Rest?

WASHINGTON: This week, the House Armed Services Committee gave advocates for the Army National Guard about half of what they wanted. Next week, a staffer told me, the Senate Armed Services Committee may look at giving the Guard the other half. But because Guard backers have taken very different approaches in each chamber, it’ll be…

State Guard Generals Take Fight To Senate, Push Freeze To Planned Cuts

State Guard Generals Take Fight To Senate, Push Freeze To Planned Cuts
State Guard Generals Take Fight To Senate, Push Freeze To Planned Cuts

[UPDATED with Army & Senate responses] WASHINGTON: After convening in Washington for briefings on the Army budget and how to implement it, the state-level commanders of the National Guard have instead launched a new offensive against the Army plan to cut their forces, flooding Capitol Hill with letters and PowerPoint slides (embedded below). Their immediate goal:…

Ayotte Slams Hagel’s A-10 Fleet Cuts; U-2 Retires, Army Shrinks, Cruisers Laid Up: 2015 Budget

Ayotte Slams Hagel’s A-10 Fleet Cuts; U-2 Retires, Army Shrinks, Cruisers Laid Up: 2015 Budget
Ayotte Slams Hagel’s A-10 Fleet Cuts; U-2 Retires, Army Shrinks, Cruisers Laid Up: 2015 Budget

UPDATED: Sen. Leahy, 12 Other Senators, Decry Planned Guard Cuts To Hagel (6:20 PM Monday) PENTAGON: Congress and the Pentagon are likely to battle for most of the rest of this year over the administration’s budget plans: to retire the U-2 (again); to retire half the Navy’s current cruiser fleet; to trim and consolidate pay…

Sen. Inouye Dies; Who Will Replace War Hero Chairman In Dual Appropriations Roles?

WASHINGTON: Daniel Inouye is dead. Who will succeed him? Well, it might be a “she.” It is callous, even ghoulish, that we media have started speculating on who will succeed one of the nation’s most respected Senators within four hours of his death, but that’s Washington for you. As the condolences and eulogies pour in…