Sen. Tim Kaine says Congress will 'have a hard time' reviewing Trump's military budget request

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: NBC News

April 5, 2026, 10:12 AM EDT


Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., on Sunday expressed skepticism about the Trump administration's 2027 budget plan, which includes a request of $1.5 trillion from Congress to fund the Defense Department, a 44% increase from the amount that was appropriated to that agency for this year. "I have a hard time seeing that size of an increase as being justified," Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told NBC News' "Meet the Press."

The senator added that he and other members of the committee would be "taking a look at it" over the next several weeks. Part of his doubts, Kaine said, stem from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's decision last week to oust Army chief of staff Gen. Randy George, the chief of chaplains, Maj. Gen. William Green, and the commanding general of Army Transformation and Training Command, David Hodne.

"Here's a question we have to ask, which is, it's not just about the dollars, it's about the Pentagon managing the money," the Virginia senator said. "You just watched the Secretary of Defense fire very respected Army leadership in the middle of a war -- respected leadership on both sides of the aisle in both houses, and there's deep questions about why."

"I don't think Congress is going to be in a mood to write a blank check to a leadership team, a civilian leadership team that seems so inept these days," Kaine added.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/tim-kaine-congress-trump-military-budget-request-iran-hegseth-rcna266776

[twodogsbarking]

1. Like free drugs to an addict. Only one thing will stop him.

[mdbl]

8. That's the best analogy.

This will only increase Kegsbreath's make-up budget. He'll just build a bigger salon.

[dalton99a]

2. Throw it in the trash.

[NoMoreRepugs]

3. Why is Kane being so "diplomatic" in his choice of words? Dems need to start

paying attention to Newsom and Pritzker as communicators - tell it straight - WhiskeyPete isn’t fit to manage the line for porta-potties at a county fair let alone the Armed Forces.

[BeyondGeography]

4. Yeah, like, gee, a 44 percent increase...that does seem like a lot

[AZJonnie]

11. Also my immediate thought!

But in fairness, Kaine has always been pretty measured (one might say "milquetoast" ) in his verbiage. I do agree that no Democrat should be responding to the fucker's craziness with this degree of calm and normalcy at this point, but I've resigned myself to regular disappointment on this front

[Blue_Roses]

15. With Tim Kaine's

calm approach it reminds me there are a few adults still in the room. But, I suspect he's thinking to himself, "no effing way...", or something like that...

[KPN]

18. Yeah. Mmmhmm, while he silently recites the Boy Scouts

Oath … on my honor, I will do my best …

Nice thought, but we need street fighters not Boy Scouts at a time like this.

[thought crime]

16. He should have declared it DOA

An insane idea from a real nut-job. Don't sane-wash it for him.

[walkingman]

5. "hard time"? why is it so damn hard to figure that out? Get a life.

[bucolic_frolic]

6. Has Congress ever assigned auditors and cost accountants?

to the military budget? Remember those $1,000 hammers in Reagan's slush funding.

[Midnight Writer]

7. An old bureaucrat's trick. Claim you need 500 billion, you could get by with 400 billion, you settle for 200 billion.

The Art of the Deal.

[Evolve Dammit]

9. It's easy. Just say NO. This is HIS war, HIS distraction and HIS blood lust to please the christo-fascists. NO.

[IronLionZion]

10. They could tell him where to shove it

[Martin68]

12. I'm not trying to be picky, but the headline is misleading. He didn't say he' going to "have a hard time reviewing the

military budget request," he said he's "going to have a hard time voting to approve the budget request."

[AverageOldGuy]

13. Kaine is my senator.

Here's the text of my letter to him sent a few minutes ago.

Dear Senator Kaine:

Do not approve a penny of Trump's ridiculous $1.5 trillion for the Department of Defense if you want my vote, my work for you, and my donations.

I sent the same letter to my other senator, Mark Warner..

[Trueblue Texan]

14. If the Executive is unwilling...

...to get Congress' approval to wage war as the Constitution requires, why should Congress agree to appropriate funds for such "excursions?"

[thought crime]

17. Another couple months of this war and voters will be ready to de-fund the Pentagon