Republicans on the House Budget Committee rolled out a sweeping $95 billion spending framework on Wednesday that would direct $73 billion toward defense and intelligence operations over the next decade while dangling $10 billion in federal grants to coax states into adopting President Donald Trump’s signature voting restrictions. The 47 page resolution, scheduled for committee markup on Thursday, carves out $60 billion for the Pentagon and $13 billion for intelligence agencies, alongside $12 billion for agricultural relief, a fraction of the $350 billion in additional defense spending Trump has demanded. GOP leaders aim to muscle the package through Congress via budget reconciliation, bypassing the Senate filibuster and the Democratic opposition that blocked a $1.15 trillion annual defense policy bill just one day earlier.
The resolution arrives as the Pentagon’s arsenal is under extraordinary strain. The 38 day bombing campaign against Iran known as Operation Epic Fury burned through more than 1,000 Tomahawk missiles and depleted up to 290 THAAD interceptors alongside significant Patriot missile stocks, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The $60 billion defense allocation would help fund the Iran war, refill depleted weapons stores, and boost readiness, though leaders offered few specifics. The most politically volatile element is the $10 billion earmarked to incentivize state level adoption of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, legislation that would require documentary proof of citizenship to register for federal elections, mandate photo ID at the polls, and effectively eliminate mail and online registration methods that more than 18 million Americans relied on in 2022. The Brennan Center for Justice estimates over 21 million eligible citizens lack ready access to the required documents.
That gamble faces headwinds from within the GOP itself. Senate Majority Leader John Thune downplayed expectations, saying, “We’ll see if they can get it across the floor of the House. It’s an option. But it’s not, certainly, the only option.” Republican Senator Thom Tillis was blunter: “You want to talk to me about a reconciliation that has the SAVE Act in it? Waste of time.” Moderates in both chambers prefer handling defense spending through bipartisan negotiations rather than partisan reconciliation. With the Senate’s narrow Republican majority needing near unanimous party discipline, and Democrats united against both the defense and voting provisions, the resolution’s fate may hinge on whether GOP leaders can convince their members that national security imperatives outweigh concerns about attaching controversial election law to military funding.
