In response to President Trump’s demand that the Pentagon cut defense spending by five percent next year, the Defense Department is preparing two budgets for the president to review, a $733 billion option, and a scaled-down $700 billion choice.

Deputy Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan told reporters Thursday that no sooner had the Pentagon finished a draft of the bigger budget plan than Trump announced at a cabinet meeting he wanted the topline closer to $700 billion — a 2.2 percent cut from the current year’s spending plan of $716 billion.