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A $1 Trillion Defense Budget: Gop Unveils Proposal 

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Defense &
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The Big Story 

A $1 trillion defense budget: GOP unveils proposal 

House Republicans have released legislation that would increase Pentagon spending by $150 billion, pushing the total defense budget in FY-25 to more than $1 trillion if passed.

© Greg Nash

The bill, developed by the House and Senate Armed Services committees, includes nearly $25 billion earmarked for President Trump’s long-discussed Golden Dome missile defense initiative, a shield intended to protect the entire continental United States against advanced missiles. 

 

When combined with the already approved $886 billion defense budget, the added dollars would bring defense spending to more than $1 trillion for the first time in U.S. history.

 

Republicans are pushing the $150 billion funding boost as part of the party’s sprawling package full of Trump’s domestic policy priorities. Republicans are planning to use the budget reconciliation process to pass the bill, which allows the party to circumvent Democratic opposition in the Senate.

 

The House Armed Services Committee is scheduled to consider the legislation and hold a vote on advancing it — a gathering known as a markup — Tuesday at 10 a.m. EDT. The panel’s language will then be combined with different portions from other panels to create the party’s budget reconciliation bill.

 

House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) called the defense portion of the reconciliation bill “a historic investment” to restore U.S. military capabilities and strengthen national defense.

 

But Democrats have already begun to push back on what House Armed Services Committee ranking member Adam Smith (D-Wash.) called a “partisan budget reconciliation gimmick" that “will be paid for by devastating cuts that can only come from critical programs like Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and student loan and grant programs at the Department of Education."

 

Also included in the bill are $33.7 billion for shipbuilding, $20.4 billion for munitions, $13.5 billion for “innovation,” $12.9 billion for nuclear deterrence, $11.5 billion for military readiness, $11.1 billion for Pacific deterrence, $7.2 billion for aircraft, $5 billion for border security, $4.5 billion for the B-21 bomber, $2 billion for military intelligence, and $380 million for the Pentagon’s annual audit.  

 

Read the full report at TheHill.com.

 

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I'm Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.

 

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Essential Reads 

How policy will affect defense and national security now and in
the future:

 

President Trump fired off rare public criticism of Russian leader Vladimir Putin and sat for a dramatic one-on-one talk with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Vatican over the weekend, marking a starkly pro-Ukraine tilt for the president as he pushes for a peace deal.  But it comes after details emerged last week of a U.S. peace proposal that tracks largely with Putin’s interests and demands, including Ukraine …

 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wants individuals with certain medical conditions to be disqualified from joining the military, according to a new memo released Monday. “The standards for accession into the U.S. military are high, uncompromising, and clear,” Hegseth wrote in the memo, which was signed Thursday. “Young Americans seeking to serve in the greatest fighting force in history must be physically and mentally capable …

 

A more than $60 million F/A-18E Super Hornet on the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier fell overboard and was “lost” to the Red Sea, the Navy announced Monday. The fighter jet, assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 136, “was actively under tow in the hangar bay when the move crew lost control of the aircraft. The aircraft and tow tractor were lost overboard,” according to a Navy statement. The service noted that the sailors …

 

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On Our Radar 

Upcoming things we're watching on our beat: 

  • President Trump will speak at an event at Selfridge Air National Guard Base tomorrow in Michigan.
  • The House Armed Services Committee will hold a markup tomorrow for the $150 billion defense reconciliation bill for fiscal year 2025 at 10 a.m. 
 
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Tomorrow's news today

In today's Evening Report: Russia-Ukraine peace talks are teetering on the brink Click here to sign up

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In Other News 

Branch out with a different read from The Hill:

More than 100 immigrants lacking legal status detained in Colorado nightclub raid: DEA

Dozens of immigrants without legal status were detained by federal agents in a raid at a nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colo., early Sunday morning, officials said, as the Trump administration steps up its immigration enforcement efforts across the country. More than 100 people were taken into custody …

 

On Tap Tomorrow 

Events in and around the defense world: 

  • The Senate Armed Services Committee will consider the nominations of Michael Cadenazzi to be assistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy and Vice Adm. Scott Pappano to be principal deputy administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, at 9:30 a.m.
  • A House Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee will hold a hearing on “Tracking Progress: Updates to DoD’s Financial Management Scorecard,” at 10 a.m.
  • Another House Oversight and Government subpanel will hold a hearing on “Securing the Skies: Addressing Unauthorized Drone Activity Over U.S. Military Installations,” with testimony at 2 p.m. 
  • A House Veterans' Affairs subcommittee will have a hearing on state veterans homes operations and challenges at 2:15 p.m. 
  • A House Armed Services subpanel will hear from defense officials on the challenges facing military bases and properties at 3:30 p.m.
 

What We're Reading 

News we've flagged from other outlets:

  • With Trump-Zelensky meeting, Ukrainians see a glimmer of hope (The New York Times)
  • With new allegations of troop sexual assaults, tension returns to Okinawa and large US military presence (Military.com)
  • Active-duty troops detained in DEA raid at illegal Colorado nightclub (Military Times)
 

Trending Today 

Two key stories on The Hill right now:

Michigan Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar announced Monday he had filed articles of impeachment against President Trump. “I have introduced articles of … Read more

The U.S. dollar has weakened despite the imposition of tariffs by the Trump administration, as investors seek safer assets and the euro, yen and gold … Read more

 

Opinions in The Hill 

Op-eds related to defense & national security submitted to The Hill:

 
 

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