WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is escalating an election-year dispute with Congress over military spending as lawmakers bucked the Pentagon and spared favorite ships and aircraft despite diminishing budgets.

One day after a veto threat, Chief of Staff Denis McDonough met privately with House Democrats on Tuesday and criticized the $601 billion defense authorization bill for parochial changes as the Defense Department deals with smaller budgets. Projected defense spending has been reduced after a decade of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and amid congressional deficit hawks demand for less federal dollars.