WASHINGTON — War Secretary Pete Hegseth urged senators Tuesday to approve $67 billion in supplemental funding for the Pentagon, calling it an “urgent, necessary injection” that would be used “to address the immediate needs of our department” amid the war in Iran.
“We live in a dangerous world that requires bold and swift action. Hence, this supplemental request,” Hegseth said in testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The war secretary noted the $67 billion supplemental is “not a substitute” for President Trump’s historic, $1.5 trillion base budget request for the Pentagon.
“This supplemental request serves two purposes,” Hegseth explained. “Sustain our military readiness to meet this year’s new demand, and accelerate critical capabilities to replace and augment those we have used in contingency.
“But make no mistake, this is not a one for one replacement.”
As the Iran war rages, the Pentagon is quickly burning through cash and reportedly faces an impending budget shortfall within weeks — adding urgency to the request to Congress.
Due to mounting budget woes, the Pentagon has imposed limits on maintenance and training, which are critical to military readiness, the Washington Post reported.
“Secretary Hegseth has prioritized the needs of our military and our warfighters unlike any of his predecessors,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell told The Post.
“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.”
In his testimony, Hegseth argued the Trump administration inherited a military that “deferred maintenance almost across the board” in favor of funding “social experiments and globalist appeasement.”
“You’re looking at a lot of negligence and a lot of deferred maintenance that this department is having to catch up on,” the Pentagon chief said. “And so that’s why I call this a generational investment. It truly is. This is a $1.5 trillion budget, with this supplemental being part of it is how we catch up and get ahead and ensure in the process, we’re putting soldiers and sailors and airmen first.”
Currently, GOP lawmakers in Congress are working on a “Reconciliation 3.0” bill that would inject the Pentagon with a $73 billion infusion for defense and intelligence, less than the $200 billion Pentagon honchos initially dangled in March.
But the House is poised to take up a budget resolution framework this week that would merely unlock the process in the Senate to pass the additional funding.
Then the House is set to break for a five-week recess on Thursday. The House and Senate are not slated to be back in session at the same time until mid-September.
In other words, Congress won’t be able to pass the military supplemental package for at least two months.
“Everybody needs to look at this situation and get rid of the complacency that they have,” Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC), who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, told the Washington Post.
In his testimony, Hegseth estimated the Pentagon would spend about $37.5 million on the Iran war by the end of September.
Trump first ordered strikes on Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury in February, before agreeing to a cease-fire with the Islamic Republic that has collapsed this month.
Over recent days, the US has begun striking Iran again in an effort to undermine its ability to close off the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint, where nearly a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil supplies once flowed through annually.
Iran has managed to carry out numerous sophisticated attacks on US bases and assets in the region, killing at least three American service members over the weekend.
As a result of the fighting, parts of the budget for the Navy and Air Force for operations in the Middle East could run dry by the month’s end, according to the report.
The Pentagon has shifted money around in response and is reportedly seeking to transfer $4.3 billion from weapons purchases and training to more pressing areas.
All of this comes amid a scramble by the Trump administration to restock America’s arsenal with critical munitions.
Trump has pushed for a $1.5 trillion defense budget that would boost total defense spending by nearly 50%, but has faced complications in Congress. That comes in addition to a $150 billion boost for the military in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Hegseth noted that “95% of that one big beautiful bill funding will be allocated by the end of September.”
“So these are things we said we would spend and we told you we would spend and we plan to spend by the end of September,” Hegseth told senators. “So this is a new request based on new realities of a world we face – stepping up to meet that moment.”
