The Pentagon was caught attempting to divert funding for infectious-disease research to cover its own money woes, sparking outcry from a Democratic lawmaker.
According to reporting by Punchbowl News, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) sounded the alarm on Thursday by revealing that the Department of Defense is trying to divert billions of dollars from the National Institutes of Health.
DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said that the Pentagon is trying to "siphon" money through an interagency agreement with the NIH. She warned the agreement could give the Pentagon access to billions that Congress appropriated to the NIH's institute for infectious disease research.
"This secretive attempt to siphon research funds away from NIH is outrageous," DeLauro wrote in a statement. "The interagency agreement needs to be terminated immediately."
She also noted the Pentagon's money troubles, writing, "It is no secret that the Department of Defense is facing enormous financial pressure because of President Trump's war of choice with Iran." Punchbowl News reported that President Donald Trump is asking for $1.5 trillion in funding for the Pentagon, but the request "seems as murky as ever."
According to DeLauro, the Pentagon is trying to pull money from the NIH's leading institute for infectious-disease research, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
"Circumventing Congress to divert money intended to help Americans who are exposed to HIV, influenza, tuberculosis, and other deadly diseases—and directing those funds to the Department of Defense—is beyond the pale," DeLauro wrote. "The administration must provide Congress with a full accounting of how this interagency agreement was developed and exactly how much taxpayer money it is trying to transfer to DoD."
The total budget for NIAID is about $6.6 billion, according to Punchbowl News. The interagency agreement between the Pentagon and the NIH doesn't specify exactly how much money the Pentagon can pull from that budget, a source told Punchbowl News.
The Pentagon didn't respond to Punchbowl News' request for comment.