Pentagon to submit new budget Feb. 4

By Tony Bertuca / December 10, 2018 at 2:23 PM

The Pentagon on Feb. 4 plans to submit its fiscal year 2020 budget request, the size of which is now the subject of frenzied speculation amid new reports of a significant increase.

Chris Sherwood, a Pentagon spokesman, said the submission schedule remains subject to change by the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Meanwhile, multiple media outlets are reporting President Trump has changed his mind about a $700 billion defense budget and approved a new topline of $750 billion. Sources with knowledge of the discussions confirmed the newly proposed topline for Inside Defense, but the Defense Department has declined to comment.

"The department is committed to ensuring our military remains the most lethal force in the world. We are working with OMB to determine the department's topline budget number," Sherwood said.

Trump's $50 billion reversal followed a White House meeting with GOP defense committee chairmen and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. Dozens of GOP lawmakers have also drafted a letter to Trump urging him to maintain a defense budget of at least $733 billion.

In an interview last month with Inside Defense, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-OK) said he did not take Trump's initial announcement of a $700 billion defense budget seriously, noting that he and other Republicans could likely convince the president more funding is needed.

The proposed $50 billion reversal comes after Trump tweeted last week that the current $716 billion defense budget is "crazy" and pledged new efforts to halt an "uncontrollable arms race" with Russia and China.

Bob Work, a former deputy defense secretary in the Obama administration, said the proposed increase should be viewed with caution.

"With this president, it is very difficult to say," he said. "One day, $733 billion. Another day, $700 billion. The next day, $750 billion."

Regardless of the request, it is Congress that must appropriate spending for FY-20. It will have to do so as a mandatory budget limit returns, capping defense spending at $576 billion. Democrats, who have won a new majority in the House, say any deal to increase spending above the cap must be matched by a boost in non-defense spending, which is also subject to statutory limits.

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