BUDGET FIGHT BREWING: Despite urgent pleas from the Pentagon for full funding of the military before the end of the year, an internecine battle among Senate Republicans is threatening to delay any increase in Pentagon funds until next month, and possibly even later in the year.
At issue is the agreement by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to pass an omnibus spending bill to fund the federal government, including the Department of Defense, in the lame-duck session of Congress before the Christmas break.
At stake is the Pentagon’s access to an extra $45 billion above the Biden administration’s defense budget request, which would be authorized in a separate policy bill that also needs to be passed by the end of the year.
Funding under a stopgap continuing resolution, or “CR,” expires on Dec. 16.
NOT SO FAST: On Tuesday, McConnell said there was “widespread agreement” on the need to pass an omnibus spending bill, including from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
“I think everyone wants an omnibus,” said Schumer. “We have different views of what should be in the omnibus, but we have agreed, the four leaders and the four heads of the appropriations committees, to sit down very shortly and begin thrashing out how we can come together and get an omnibus done.”
Enter National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Rick Scott (R-FL) and Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Mike Braun (R-IN), who say not so fast. In a letter to McConnell, the four conservative senators argued no budget should be passed until after Republicans take control of the House in January so that GOP priorities can be addressed, such as eliminating funding for 87,000 new IRS employees.
“We believe it would be both imprudent, and a reflection of poor leadership, for Republicans to ignore the will of the American people and rubber stamp an omnibus spending bill that funds ten more months of President Biden’s agenda without any check on his reckless policies that have led to a 40-year high in inflation,” the senators wrote. “We must not accept anything other than a short-term Continuing Resolution that funds the federal government until shortly after the 118th Congress is sworn in. No additional spending, no additional policy priorities should be included.”
RICK SCOTT REVOLTS AGAINST MCCONNELL OVER SPENDING BILL AS DEC. 16 SHUTDOWN LOOMS
AUSTIN: ‘WE CAN’T OUTCOMPETE CHINA WITH OUR HANDS TIED BEHIND OUR BACK’: This week Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin wrote letters to Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress urging passage of “a full-year, whole of government funding bill” before the end of the year, warning that “failure to do so will result in significant harm to our people and our programs.”
“We can’t outcompete China with our hands tied behind our back three, four, five or six months of every fiscal year,” Austin wrote, expressing fear that the impasse over the budget could result in a yearlong spending freeze that would cripple the Pentagon.
“Operating under a CR moves our budget backward, not forward, reducing our topline by at least $3 billion per month,” Austin argued. “Under the CR, the progress funded by our FY2023 research and development budget — the largest requested in history — cannot take place. And our FY2023 procurement request — also the largest requested in history — cannot be fully executed. An ongoing CR will cause delays in all three legs of the nuclear triad when we have no schedule margin left to give.”
“I strongly urge you to act decisively — now,” he wrote.
LLOYD AUSTIN URGES CONGRESS TO PASS NEW SPENDING BILL TO AVOID ‘SIGNIFICANT HARM’
Good Thursday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Stacey Dec. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow us on Twitter: @dailyondefense.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP OR READ BACK ISSUES OF DAILY ON DEFENSE
NOTE TO READERS: Daily on Defense will be taking a two-week end-of-the-year holiday hiatus from Dec. 19 through Jan. 2, 2023. We’ll be back in your inbox and online at DailyonDefense.com, beginning Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023.
Subscribe today to the Washington Examiner magazine and get Washington Briefing: politics and policy stories that will keep you up to date with what’s going on in Washington. SUBSCRIBE NOW: Just $1.00 an issue!
HAPPENING TODAY: Ukraine is expected to be at the top of the agenda this morning as President Joe Biden welcomes French President Emmanuel Macron to the White House for the first official visit from a head of state since Biden took office in January 2021.
After a bit of pomp on the White House South Lawn, the two leaders will sit down in the Oval Office for a bilateral meeting at 10 a.m. “It will underscore the deep and enduring relationship between the United States and France, our oldest ally, that is founded on our shared democratic values, economic ties, and defense and security cooperation,” the White House said in a statement.
Biden and Macron are scheduled to hold a press conference in the East Room at 11:45 a.m., and then at 8:50 p.m., Biden and first lady Jill Biden are set to honor Macron with the first state dinner of Biden’s presidency.
Macron arrived in Washington yesterday on a three-day visit. He lunched yesterday with members of Congress from both parties, along with business leaders and diplomats, and in various remarks criticized a deal reached at a recent climate summit in Egypt in which the U.S. and other wealthy nations agreed to help pay reparations to poor countries for damage caused by climate change.
MACRON’S STAR-STUDDED WHITE HOUSE VISIT OVERSHADOWED BY GROWING US-EU TRADE TENSIONS
AMERICANS LOSING FAITH IN ‘WOKE’ MILITARY: The latest survey by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, its fifth, found that American confidence in the military continues to be eroded by the perception that the armed forces have become increasingly politicized.
“Just four years ago, 70% of survey respondents said they had a great deal of trust and confidence in the military. However, that percentage steadily declined, and last year, for the first time, a minority of Americans had the highest level of confidence in the military, only 45%,” the institute said in a press release. “This year, that trend appears to be stabilizing. Now 48% say they have a great deal of trust and confidence in the military.”
Among the findings:
- 62% of Americans believe that military leadership is becoming overly politicized
- Nearly 60% of respondents say that the performance and competence of presidents as commanders-in-chief are decreasing their confidence in the military
- 55% say the performance and competence of the military’s civilian leadership is a concern
- 50% say so-called woke practices undermine military effectiveness
- 46% attribute decreasing confidence to so-called far-right or extremist people serving in the military
On other topics:
- 82% see Russia as an enemy, up from 65% just last year
- 76% see Ukraine as an ally, up from 49% in 2021
- 67% are concerned about Russian victory in the war in Ukraine
- 60% have a favorable view of NATO, with 23% unfavorable — consistent with previous surveys
- 75% now view China as an enemy, up from 65% in 2021 and 55% in 2018
- 54% say the U.S. does not have a clear strategy for managing its relationship with China, while only 27% say it does, and 20% don’t know
- 65% say they are open to the idea of committing U.S. forces to defend Taiwan
Read the full survey here.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The Rundown
Washington Examiner: Rick Scott revolts against McConnell over spending bill as Dec. 16 shutdown looms
Washington Examiner: White House ‘deeply concerned’ about Paul Whelan because family isn’t hearing from him
Washington Examiner: US aims to thwart ‘savage’ Putin plans for war in Ukraine
Washington Examiner: NATO wonders how to avoid clash with China as PLA bombers land in Russia
Washington Examiner: Fire on board USS Abraham Lincoln leaves nine sailors with minor injuries
Washington Examiner: Opinion: Three ways Chinese nuclear buildup threatens US national security interests
AP: Ukraine welcomes arms offers, no word on Patriot missiles
Reuters: Heaviest Ukraine Fighting Rages In East, NATO Seeks To Sustain Support Against Russia
CNN: U.S. Considers Dramatically Expanding Training Of Ukrainian Forces, U.S. Officials Say
Washington Post: Ukraine Presses NATO On Formerly Deferred Membership
New York Times: NATO Nations Warming To U.S. Pleas to Adjust Strategy Toward China
Wall Street Journal: The U.S. Government Keeps Buying Chinese Drones
Reuters: Pentagon Chief Warns Turkey Against New Military Operation In Syria
Defense News: Senate Confirms Pentagon Watchdog After Seven-Year Vacancy
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force’s New ABMS Czar Talks Integration Challenges, Initial Assessments
National Defense Magazine: Naval Aviation Ground Mishaps Have ‘Gone Through The Roof’, Official Says
Politico: House, Senate Negotiators Agree To Add $45B To Biden’s Defense Budget
USNI News: House, Senate Agree To Authorize 3 Flight III Destroyers In FY 23 NDAA Negotiations
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Acquisition Reform Takes On a Sense of Urgency
Breaking Defense: 3 Keys To Bridging ‘Valley Of Death’: Get Involved Early, Cut Out Middlemen And Pray Congress Works
Marine Corps Times: A Record 6 Women Completed The Marine Infantry Officer Course In 2022
Air & Space Forces: Magazine: Eight B-2s Gather for Rare ‘Elephant Walk’ of Stealth Bomber
19fortyfive.com: Is Russia Mounting a Comeback in Ukraine?
19fortyfive.com: Is Vladimir Putin Sick With Cancer or Parkinson’s?
19fortyfive.com: Watch: See How Ukraine Keeps Killing Russia’s Best Tanks
19fortyfive.com: Putin Has a New Strategy to Avoid Losing to Ukraine: Start Digging In
19fortyfive.com: Shocking: Putin Has Lost Nearly 100,000 Troops in Ukraine
Calendar
THURSDAY | DECEMBER 1
9:30 a.m. — Foundation for Defense of Democracies discussion: “Rogue Proliferators: Nonproliferation Threats Posed by Iran, Syria, Russia, and North Korea,” with keynote remarks by C.S. Eliot Kang, assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, and panel discussion with Michael Allen, former special assistant to the president and National Security Council senior director for counterproliferation strategy; Anthony Ruggiero, senior director of FDD’s Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program and former deputy assistant to the president for national security affairs and NSC senior director for counterproliferation and biodefense; Andrea Stricker, FDD research fellow and deputy director of FDD’s Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program; and moderated by Vivian Salama, national security reporter for the Wall Street Journal https://www.fdd.org/events/2022/12/01/rogue-proliferators
10 a.m. — Arab Center virtual discussion: “Iraq at a Crossroads: Challenges and Prospects Facing the New Government,” with former Iraqi Ambassador to the United States Rend al Rahim, president and co-founder of the Iraq Foundation; Marsin Alshamary, nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Center for Middle East Policy; Zeidon Alkinani, nonresident fellow at the Arab Center; and Imad Harb, director of research at the Arab Center https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
11 a.m. — Stimson Center chairman’s forum conversation with retired Chief of Space Operations Gen. John “Jay” Raymond, moderated by retired Air Force Gen. Herbert “Hawk” Carlisle, chairman, Stimson Center Board of Directors https://www.stimson.org/event/the-chairmans-forum
FRIDAY | DECEMBER 2
8 p.m. Simi Valley, California — Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute annual Reagan National Defense Forum, full agenda at: https://www.reaganfoundation.org/media
SATURDAY | DECEMBER 3
10:15 a.m. Simi Valley, California — Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute annual Reagan National Defense Forum, full agenda at: https://www.reaganfoundation.org/media
MONDAY | DECEMBER 5
8:30 a.m. — Stimson Center forum: “Voices from Japan: Japan’s National Security Strategy in the Era of Strategic Competition,” Nobukatsu Kanehara, professor, faculty of law, Department of Political Science, Doshisha University; and Yuki Tatsumi, director, Japan Program, Stimson Center https://www.stimson.org/event/voices-from-japan
2:30 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual and in-person event: “The Convergence of National Security and Homeland Security: A Conversation with DHS Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas”
THURSDAY | DECEMBER 8
8 a.m. 2401 M St., N.W. — George Washington Project for Media and National Security Defense Writers Group conversation with Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger Contact: Thom Shanker at [email protected]
9 a.m. 801 Wharf St. S.W. — Aspen Strategy Group’s “Aspen Security Forum: D.C. Edition,” with Kathleen Hicks, deputy defense secretary; David Turk, deputy energy secretary; Sen. Todd Young (R-IN); Pekka Haavisto, Finnish foreign affairs minister; Zbigniew Rau, Polish foreign affairs minister; Tobias Lindner, German minister of state; Enrique Mora, deputy secretary-general, European External Action Service; Arati Prabhakar, director, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; and Zoe Baird, senior counselor to the secretary for technology and economic growth, U.S. Department of Commerce https://web.cvent.com/event
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“President Putin thinks that if he can just raise the costs high enough, the world will abandon Ukraine, that we’ll leave them to fend for themselves. His strategy has not and will not work. We will continue to prove him wrong.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in remarks in Bucharest, Romania
