Senior Republicans, some of whom were given personal assurances from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that the Pentagon budget would be bolstered, were shocked and dismayed when he failed to come through.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, fingers are being pointed at Russ Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, who pulled the rug out from his fellow Donald Trump appointee and who is also facing a growing rebellion among Republican Party lawmakers.
As the Journal's Ken Thomas, Scott Patterson and Lindsay Wise are reporting, national security-oriented Republicans are not happy with Vought after believing Hegseth's assurances that the budget would fall in line with what they wanted to see.
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The report notes Republicans are not happy that Vought is insisting "that military spending receive increases only through a procedure known as budget reconciliation, as opposed to the annual budget ... even as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and senior Republicans pushed for more funding.
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, singled out Vought, stating, "Russ has a lot of sway as the OMB director. He’s got a very sharp pencil.”
According to the Journal, Vought's belief that the president can "impound" funds he doesn't want to spend could lead to increased public battles with lawmakers, with the report noting, it "could set off a fight between lawmakers and the White House on who controls the nation’s purse strings. A senior OMB official said during a recent call with reporters that impoundment hasn’t been taken 'off the table.'"
You can read more here.
