Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attends a confirmation hearing in early January 2025. Hegseth recently returned to Capitol Hill requesting further funding for the Department of Defense, but received pushback from lawmakers. (Shutterstock/Joshua Sukoff)

Pentagon to Congress: Spot Us Another $80 Billion, Please

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Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has stressed the need for emergency funding to prevent American munitions stockpiles from running out. 

As wars go, America’s recent conflict with Iran was far from the deadliest or most destructive it has fought in its modern history. Even so, the price has been heavy. Thirteen US servicemembers have been killed in the war, including seven by enemy action and six more in an aerial mishap involving a refueling tanker.

However, the main costs of the Iran war have been financial, with some estimates placing the total at more than $132 billion to date. That includes both direct military expenditures, which are nearly $30 billion, and the rest in inflated fuel prices and higher borrowing costs. The numbers could soon be even greater, as Pentagon officials are now asking lawmakers for a supplemental funding package of roughly $80 billion to cover the costs of resupply and base repairs in the Middle East.

Military officials have warned that without the supplemental funding, the US armed forces could run out of money for operations this summer, according to The Wall Street Journal. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has yet to actually make a formal request to Congress, but Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has talked to lawmakers behind closed doors about the dire need for the additional........

© The National Interest