Alabama’s Katie Britt Pushes For Military Budget Boost
Alabama Junior U.S. Senator Katie Britt is developing a strong reputation in the upper chamber of congress as a dealmaker. She has developed a reputation as a bipartisan senator like her old boss, retired longtime U.S. Senator and Tuscaloosa resident Richard Shelby. The deal she is working on right now may be one of her toughest sells during her first term.
She is working the phones and conducting personal visits with her colleagues in an attempt to get President Trump's additional defense spending approved, especially by fellow Republicans, many who are skeptical.
Trump is calling for a third reconciliation package to bolster military funding and efforts to pass the SAVE America Act. This morning on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures. Britt advocated for increased military funding, including a $1.5 trillion defense budget and the SAVE America Act, while criticizing Democratic pushback.
“We’ve got to make sure, Maria, that our troops have what they need to keep Americans safe and to keep peace and prosperity moving across the globe, “Britt, who is on the Senate Appropriations Committee, told program host Maria Bartiromo.
The question facing Britt in her deal making process is whether Republican leaders can unify around Trump’s call and the massive defense funding Britt endorsed.
Britt's challenge now is to not only find a way to work a deal with Democrats but members of her own party.
Also in the mix is an expected supplemental funding request from the White House to backfill depleted munitions used in the U.S. air campaign against Iran to maintain military readiness. The Trump administration initially signaled it would need $200 billion for that effort but has since cut that figure down to some $90 billion.
The Hill reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told top congressional defense leaders, including House Armed Services Committee Chair, Alabama Congressman Mike Rogers, that the Pentagon hoped to “fill the hole” created by U.S. operations in Iran and Venezuela via a supplemental appropriation.
As for the trillion-plus dollar military budget and the Save America Act, the UA grad told Bartiromo she would like to secure the funding through the normal process but believe Democrats will force reconciliation.
The freshman senator also told the Fox audience she is not going to give up pushing for a deal. That's something she for which she is earning quate a reputation.
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