WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today participated in an Appropriations Committee hearing to review President Trump’s June 24, 2026, Supplemental funding request of $87.6 billion—including $67 billion for Department of Defense (DoD) funding. In addition to an unprecedented defense spending request while cutting non-defense spending, DoD has $75 billion in unobligated funding from Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA).
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“What’s going to happen to that $75 billion [in unobligated OBBBA funding]?” Durbin asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Instead of responding to Durbin, Secretary Hegseth engaged in political grandstanding—spewing nonsense about the previous Administration.
“You estimated at one point, the cost of the war in Iran was $29 billion… do you have a new estimate about what the war has cost us [as of now]?” Durbin asked.
Secretary Hegseth provided an incomplete war cost estimate of $37.5 billion as of today. Durbin then asked if the recent strikes in Iran will increase the cost of the war to which Secretary Hegseth didn’t directly respond.
Durbin then asked Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine about the Ukraine war. Durbin noted he met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy while at the NATO summit earlier this month, where President Zelenskyy requested assistance with air defenses as a high priority. General Caine acknowledged that President Zelenskyy has made the request but is not sure whether it will move forward.
“Are you aware of the fact [that] we appropriated, and the President signed into law, $400 million in supplemental funding for Ukraine including for air defenses?” Durbin asked.
General Caine responded that he was aware.
“Are you also aware that the Administration has informed us that that money will not be available in many aspects until the next President is in office?” Durbin asked.
General Caine dodged the question to which Durbin responded, “I’m sorry to tell you the pay plan tells us to be prepared to spend that money in Fiscal Year [20]29.”
“If you’re talking about air defenses and the momentum alongside Zelenskyy, what impact will it have if we can’t fund this for three years?” Durbin asked.
General Caine commented that Ukraine’s defense has come a long way.
Durbin concluded, “We’re in a moment in history where we can win the war in Ukraine—that victory would be critically important for those people who have fought for more than four years against the odds and proven they can put Putin back on his heels. But instead of finding the money they need now for air defenses, we’re putting more money to this exchange with Iran—a war of choice which we never should have entered.”
Durbin also expressed his condolences for the service members who have been killed in Iran so far.
Video of Durbin’s questions in Committee is available here.
Audio of Durbin’s questions in Committee is available here.
