Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of May 6, 2024. The U.S. Air Force would receive enough money to buy 51 F-35As in fiscal 2024 under the compromise defense spending bill lawmakers released. If Congress does not approve a federal appropriations plan by midnight, some military activities could be postponed or canceled over the weekend. The Air Force says this reorganization is needed to prepare it for a fight against China, but lawmakers say they need to hear more about these plans. Lawmakers and senior military leaders say that military pay needs to be based more on the role and responsibilites of troops, and not simply their age. The Pentagon is operating under its third continuing resolution of fiscal 2024 as Congress continues to draft defense spending legislation. Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of Oct. 30, 2023. Senate lawmakers are pushing VA officials to look into toxic exposure injuries among troops who deployed to Kosovo. Democratic lawmakers decried the move as a childish political attack. A niche appropriations debate on multiyear munitions buys has ballooned into one of the numerous partisan standoffs over the defense spending bill. Load More
