GOP fiscal hawks largely unmoved by Hegseth's defense dollars pitch
Key takeaways
- Trump has frequently pressed Congress to approve $350 billion in defense funding as part of a third reconciliation bill in addition to $1.15 trillion for the Pentagon s base budget.
- The White House this week also asked Congress for nearly $88 billion, mostly to cover the Iran war.
- Republicans could in theory pass a new reconciliation bill on their own, if they can unify around one.
Why this matters: political developments that affect policy direction and public trust.
Both Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were on Capitol Hill Wednesday to shore up support for the request, among other issues, with the Pentagon chief giving a classified briefing to dozens of House Republicans before meeting with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).
Hegseth s latest trip to the Capitol, one of several over the past month, underscores the administration s uphill climb in convincing Republicans to approve massive defense spending requests at a time when there is little appetite for such legislation.
Trump has frequently pressed Congress to approve $350 billion in defense funding as part of a third reconciliation bill in addition to $1.15 trillion for the Pentagon s base budget.