Iran war

These hearings will be lawmakers’ first opportunity to publicly question Hegseth and Caine about the war in Iran, which the United States and Israel jointly launched on Feb. 28 and lasted until the president announced a ceasefire on April 7.

Thirteen American service members lost their lives during the war, seven of whom were killed in retaliatory Iranian attacks. Six of the seven service members were killed in an Iranian drone attack on a U.S. post in Kuwait, which Democratic lawmakers are seeking more information about due to stories from surviving troops about their vulnerabilities.

Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), the top Democrat on the committee, told the Washington Examiner in a statement: “What we want to hear from Secretary Hegseth tomorrow is what is the plan. What is the plan in Iran and what is the plan with the Department of Defense? Trump’s disastrous war of choice is a massive strategic blunder that shows no sign of slowing down. We’re now stuck in a position where we are unable to make progress on major issues impacting our service members and most Americans, including the cost of groceries, gas, housing, health care, and more.”

About a week into the ceasefire agreement, Trump authorized a U.S. blockade of vessels heading to and from Iranian ports as a way to make them face similar economic stress that the Iranian blockade along the Strait of Hormuz is causing on the global economy.

Defense budget

The Pentagon shared its $1.5 trillion defense budget request for fiscal 2027 last week, by far the largest budget in the country’s history. It represents a proposed 42% increase in defense spending year over year.

It includes a request of $1.15 trillion in the base budget with an expected $350 billion from reconciliation, which is a congressional tactic that allows measures to pass with a simple majority in the Senate.

The department’s budget proposal was formulated prior to the war in Iran, however.

It’s unknown how much the war in Iran has cost taxpayers, but U.S. forces dropped thousands of munitions, lost multiple aircraft and drones, and had multiple American bases in the region damaged in Iranian drone and missile attacks.

“Meanwhile, Trump’s war continues to exact a steep toll in the cost of human lives with the deaths of 13 U.S. service members and hundreds more injured, thousands of civilians killed, and staggering expenditures of munitions and materiel,” Smith continued. “We need to know what the financial costs of this war are for our military — how much have we spent and what is the cost of the equipment and munitions destroyed thus far? We need to see a coherent plan for taking the tactical successes of our military and turning them into strategic results.”

The department has signaled it intends to request additional funding through a supplemental spending package to address the costs of the war, which could ultimately be between $80 billion and $100 billion.

Personnel decisions

Hegseth is likely to receive questions about his recent decisions to push Navy Secretary John Phelan and Army chief of staff, Gen. Randy George, out of their positions. Phelan’s ouster made him the first Trump-appointed service secretary to leave the administration.

The department’s announcement about George’s retirement was met with skepticism from lawmakers of both parties.

“I just want the record to reflect how much we regret, I personally regret at least, he’s no longer in active service. He’s a real loss to us, in my opinion,” Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK), the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, said during a subcommittee hearing with Army leaders on April 16.

Hegseth has clashed with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, who worked closely with George. Driscoll told lawmakers during that hearing he was with his children in North Carolina during their spring break when he was informed that George was being forced out of his position.

HEGSETH’S REVOLVING DOOR AT THE PENTAGON CONTINUES

“When we drove back from North Carolina, I drove straight to Gen. George’s house,” he said. “We walked right in, and we all gave him a hug. There is no person that has more respect for Gen. George and his 42 years of service, his Purple Heart, his wife Patty, their grandkids, their kids. I adore them, and he was an amazing, transformational leader. I, too, loved Gen. George.”

During a different hearing last week in front of the House Armed Services Committee, one member, Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA), said “some of us are not through asking questions about that,” in reference to George’s ouster. He called it “an extreme disservice to the U.S. Army, and I think it was reckless conduct.”

Phelan and George are the latest names in a long list of personnel whom Hegseth has gotten rid of during his tenure, with most of those decisions being made without explanation.