Trump Seeks $50 Billion for Iran War Amid Republican Rift
The White House has formally requested Congress to approve additional funding of over $50 billion for military operations related to the conflict with Iran, a move that comes amid growing discord within the Republican Party over the war.
The request, sent by the Office of Management and Budget to House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday, includes $21 billion for munitions, $17.3 billion for operational costs, and $12.1 billion for classified programmes. It also seeks about $300 million to enhance security at US embassies in the Middle East and South Asia following attacks earlier in the conflict.
In addition, the request allocates $11 billion for US farmers and $1.4 billion to combat the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa, measures unrelated to the war.
The United States and Iran are currently observing a ceasefire, but the White House letter notes that the Pentagon needs to 'rebuild stocks' after military strikes.
A peace plan was agreed last week between President Donald Trump and Iran, but dissident voices within the Republican Party have expressed scepticism. Tensions escalated after Trump abruptly cancelled a signing ceremony for a bipartisan housing bill.
At a lunch on Capitol Hill, Trump complained about a Senate vote the previous evening, where the Republican-controlled Senate narrowly passed a resolution calling for restrictions on his war powers. Although largely symbolic, it was the first such resolution to clear Congress demanding a president end a military action.
Trump described the resolution as 'poorly timed and meaningless' and labelled the four Republican senators who voted with Democrats as 'losers' on social media. In a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Trump said the alliance 'want to lose the war because they're stupid.'
Senator Bill Cassidy, one of the Republican critics, recounted a shouting match with the president: 'I stood and said, You have not told the American people what's going on.' Cassidy noted that the operation, initially expected to last four weeks, had continued for four months without achieving original objectives.
Trump, however, called the meeting 'really great.' Later, Cassidy said he received a 'thorough briefing' from Vice-President JD Vance and envoy Steve Witkoff, and changed his vote to help defeat another war powers resolution, a move welcomed by Trump.
Last month, the Pentagon's chief financial officer Jules Hurst told Congress the war had cost about $29 billion so far, but analysts and lawmakers say this does not reflect the full financial damage.
