WASHINGTON: Passage of a six-month temporary budget bill would have widespread effects on the Defense Department, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin stated in a letter to key members of Congress.
Lloyd Austin has said that passing a continuing resolution that covers spending at 2024 levels, rather than taking action on the planned 2025 budget will hurt thousands of military programs, as well as damage military recruiting just as it is start to recover following the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Asking the department to compete with China, let alone manage conflicts in the Middle East and Europe, while under a lengthy CR, relations our hands behind our back while expecting us to be agile and to accelerate progress,” said the Pentagon chief in the letter to heads of the House and Senate appropriations committees.
House Speaker Mike Johnson
House Speaker Mike Johnson has teed up a vote in the current week on a bill that would keep the federal government funded for around six more months. The step aims to garner support from his more conservative GOP members by requiring states to obtain proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate, when registering a person to vote.
According to the Associated Press, Congress needs to pass a stop-gap budget bill before the end of the budget year on September 30 to avert a government shutdown just a few weeks before voters go to the elections and elect the new president.
Austin stated that the stop-gap step would cut defense spending by over $6 billion compared to the 2025 spending suggestion.
Under a continuing resolution, new programs or projects can’t be initiated. Lloyd Austin said that the approval of the temporary bill would stall over $4.3 billion in projects as well as delay 135 new military housing and construction projects totaling about $10 billion.
According to the AP, Johnson’s bill is not likely to get support in the Democratic-controlled Senate, if it even makes it that far. But Congress will have to approve some type of temporary step by Sept. 30 in order to avert a shutdown.
