The Pentagon calls Johnson’s budget initiative “devastating”, mentions support for Ukraine

Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin sent a letter to Congress urging lawmakers not to approve a temporary budget resolution that leaves spending at the 2024 level for six months and prevents funding for new programs. Instead, Austin says, Congress should pass a 2025 budget bill.

The head of the Pentagon believes that the temporary resolution will be “devastating” and will harm the funding of the department’s programs, may lead to the need to save money, including to replenish the stockpile of weapons after the transfer to Ukraine, reports the Associated Press agency, which has a copy of the letter.

“Requiring the Department to compete (with China), not to mention manage conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, the long-term budget resolution ties our hands,” Austin wrote in a letter to the chairmen of the Senate and House Appropriations Committees. .

On Friday, the speaker of the House of Representatives is a Republican Mike Johnson asked Congress to pass a temporary budget resolution that would run through March and keep the government funded at last year’s level. The bill also strengthens the requirement for proof of American citizenship when voting in elections.

Johnson’s budget proposal was also criticized in the White House. In a statement on the White House page on Monday, it is also about the risks that the long-term temporary budget resolution poses for the Pentagon.

“This signals to our allies and adversaries that the United States is not committed to its national security priorities,” the document says.

Johnson is proposing to pass the budget resolution as early as this week when the House of Representatives returns to business. However, AR notes that even if approved by the House of Representatives, the bill may not pass the Senate, where the majority is controlled by the Democratic Party.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer sent a letter to senators in which he stressed that the proposal for a temporary budget resolution proposed by Republicans was not acceptable, but expressed his willingness to work on a compromise option.

“Time and time again, we have compromised to pass essential legislation to prevent a shutdown and avoid default, renew FISA and the FAA, provide funding for our friends in Ukraine, provide funds to our allies in Israel, and provide humanitarian aid for innocent civilians in Gaza.” – says Schumer’s letter to the senators.

Congress has until Sept. 30 to decide on the budget to avoid a temporary suspension of government funding, a so-called shutdown, after the new budget year begins on Oct. 1.