The U.S. “will be tested” in the following weeks as a new deadline looms for Congress to strike a compromise on funding the military, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee warned Wednesday.
Rep. Mac Thornberry, Texas Republican, told a group of reporters on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning that “whatever we think of the president’s decisions, Congress has not done its job and funding the military.”
Lawmakers missed a key deadline at the beginning of the month, which also marked the start of the new 2020 federal fiscal year, to complete a massive defense policy bill that establishes the budget for the U.S. military. The Pentagon has since been operating on a stopgap funding bill that expires November 21, and Mr. Thornberry did not express much optimism that lawmakers would come to an agreement on a final National Defense Authorization Act by that time.
“We have less than a month of funding for our military right now,” he added, and explained that he has “100% certainty that the United States is going to be tested in the weeks to come.”
“It may well be by Iran in the Gulf, it may be by Russia and [Syrian President Bashar] Assad in Syria, it may be by terrorists in Afghanistan or elsewhere or someplace else in the world. We will be tested,” he said.
He called out fellow lawmakers who are “really good at criticizing the president” to get the bill across the finish line as issues like the ongoing impeachment inquiry and evolving situation in Syria have taken the spotlight.
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