Hegseth slated for back-to-back appropriations hearings

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is scheduled to testify before both the House and Senate defense appropriators on June 10.

Hegseth will appear first before the House Appropriations defense subcommittee in the morning and then head to testify before Senate appropriators in the afternoon.

Government officials said Hegseth is also expected to appear before the House Armed Services Committee on June 12, followed by the Senate Armed Services Committee on June 18, though those hearings have not yet been announced.

The hearings will be Hegseth’s first appearance before Congress since he was confirmed in a historic tie-breaking vote earlier this year.

The defense secretary will be expected to discuss the fiscal year 2026 budget request with lawmakers, though the White House has not yet submitted anything to Congress beyond a “skinny” version that lists only spending toplines.

Senior GOP lawmakers have criticized the Trump administration’s FY-26 approach of requesting the same budget for the Defense Department that Congress enacted for FY-25 but planning for a $120 billion increase by relying on separate budget reconciliation legislation -- the “Big Beautiful Bill” -- that has not yet passed.

Other topics of conversation are likely to include Hegseth’s actions during the “Signalgate” controversy, the future role of the “Department of Government Efficiency” at the Pentagon, the timeline and architecture of the Golden Dome missile defense program and ongoing civilian jobs cuts at DOD, including at the independent weapons testing office.