The Pentagon is frantically shuffling cash around in a desperate bid to plug the hole blasted in its budget by Donald Trump’s war with Iran.
Current and former department officials told the Washington Post just how dire the situation has become, describing how the Pentagon has been forced to limit training and maintenance that help maintain military readiness.
Trump, 80, is begging Congress to fork over $67 billion to make up the shortfall caused by the conflict he launched in the Middle East almost five months ago, after failing to secure a lasting peace.
The Post noted that “lawmakers are gridlocked over how to proceed” and that a month-long recess, scheduled to begin Thursday, means any deal on additional funding is likely “weeks away at the earliest.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, 46, will plead the administration’s case in front of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday. Russell Vought, 50, chief of the Office of Management and Budget, is expected to pitch in on the petition for more money.
Vought has previously suggested Trump’s war has cost taxpayers about $30 billion. Several independent analysts say the true figure likely dwarfs that sum, noting it does not include the estimated cost of rebuilding American bases devastated by Tehran’s strikes across the Middle East.
Current and former officials told the Post that efforts to plug the gap have seen combat readiness training and exercises “being limited or canceled,” along with spending set aside for facilities, maintenance, and equipment “also being drained.”
The growing strain on taxpayers ultimately funding Trump’s war with Iran comes hot on the heels of a new poll by Ipsos and the Post that found just 28 percent of voters say the conflict “has been worth fighting.” The newspaper notes those figures are “on par with the worst assessments of the war in Afghanistan.”
The Daily Beast contacted the Pentagon for comment on this story. “Secretary Hegseth has prioritized the needs of our military and our warfighters unlike any of his predecessors,” spokesman Sean Parnell said. “He will do whatever is necessary to protect their quality of life and ensure our military remains the most dominant force in the world. Funding our military is not optional—it is essential.”
Hegseth has previously been dismissive over concerns about how expensive Trump’s war has proven, insisting that depleted U.S. stockpiles are, in fact, “great, and they’re only getting stronger.”
