The Pentagon is preparing for another era of lean budgets that defense officials worry could chip away at the military’s readiness to fight in the Middle East after the US House of Representatives changed hands this week.
President Donald Trump fired the first shot in the fight in October, calling for across-the-board cuts to US agencies, including the Defense Department. Tuesday’s vote will give control of the influential House Armed Services Committee to Rep. Adam Smith, a Washington Democrat who wants the Pentagon to trim its budget and seeks tighter oversight of US special operations in the Middle East.
