Senate Republicans aren’t happy with the Defense Department’s budget — and they’re making it known to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
“Our commander in chief deserves a military capable of maintaining deterrence and applying force when necessary to protect U.S. interests,” Sen. Roger Wicker said in his opening statement at a Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing Wednesday. “I regret to say that this fiscal year 2026 budget request will not deliver that military.”
Hegseth has heard a barrage of complaints from both House and Senate lawmakers — and from both Democrats and Republicans — for a budget request that members of Congress say is woefully incomplete and lacking transparency.