Wicker tells Hegseth Pentagon budget is ‘inadequate’

Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that the White House’s proposed defense budget for fiscal 2026 is insufficient for the challenges facing the country.

The budget request as constructed will not deliver a “military capable of maintaining deterrence and applying force when necessary to protect U.S. interests,” Wicker said during his opening remarks of a hearing with the secretary on Wednesday.

“Across the budget, we see significant holes: shipbuilding, tactical fighters, basic maintenance money, and more — all insufficient. The budget seems to be written as if there are many items in the reconciliation package that simply are not in that bill,” Wicker continued. “This budget threatens to undermine the good work we have done

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