The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee introduced a spending bill March 4 that would fund the Pentagon through Sept. 30, but comes up short of what Defense Secretary Robert Gates says is needed.
The Senate bill funds defense at $672 billion, which includes $158 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. This represents a $17.3 billion cut to the president's request for defense spending for 2011.
The $514 billion base budget is far below the $540 billion Gates has said the Pentagon would need to operate.
The bill does not fund an alternate engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The administration has repeatedly said it does not need the G.E.-Rolls-Royce-built engine.
In addition, the bill cuts $9 billion across operations and maintenance accounts due to "programmatic adjustments, historic under-execution and unsupported requests for civilian personnel increases," according to a committee statement.
The Senate bill funds defense at $672 billion, which includes $158 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. This represents a $17.3 billion cut to the president's request for defense spending for 2011.
The $514 billion base budget is far below the $540 billion Gates has said the Pentagon would need to operate.
The bill does not fund an alternate engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The administration has repeatedly said it does not need the G.E.-Rolls-Royce-built engine.
In addition, the bill cuts $9 billion across operations and maintenance accounts due to "programmatic adjustments, historic under-execution and unsupported requests for civilian personnel increases," according to a committee statement.