SerpApi.Org
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WWNY) - Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sparred Tuesday over the U.S. war with Iran during a combative Senate Appropriations Committee hearing.
Hegseth estimated the war has cost $37.5 billion so far, as Republicans prepare a $95 billion package to fund the military, along with other White House priorities.
The defense secretary said the supplemental war funding is an “urgent, necessary” injection of money.
In a heated exchange, Gillibrand brought up President Trump saying several times the war is over and the U.S. has won.
“You’re requesting billions of dollars in supplemental funding for a war that you said would last for weeks and that the president has no plan or ability to end. At the same time, this still-unauthorized and extremely unpopular war has caused gas, diesel, fertilizer, and other essentials that New Yorkers and our farmers need across the country and has become much more expensive. So how do I go back to New York and what would you say to them, who are seeing their healthcare bills rise because massive cuts to Medicaid, they’ve seen their grocery and gas bills rise, and this unpopular and unauthorized war abroad is a higher priority to this administration than their ability to feed their families and provide healthcare to their loved ones who are sick,” Gillibrand asked Hegseth.
The defense secretary replied, “Well, Senator, you’re talking about political tradeoffs, and our job is to deliver for the United States military and the president of the United States. And we look at the cost of a nuclear Iran, and we want to prevent that for future generations. And that requires funding and supplementals, and this budget, and next-generation capabilities. And that’s why we’re here today, to request some of that, to ensure we can ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon.”
Gillibrand and Hegseth continued to spar during the hearing, which came days after the Pentagon announced that three more American service members have died in the conflict, bringing the death toll to 17, and that more than 100 have been injured since early July.
