The Senate Budget Committee seeks answers on the timeline and total of 2009 war funding

The Senate Budget Committee held a hearing on the 2009 defense budget and war costs. Witnesses were Assistant Secretary of Defense Gordon England, Defense Controller Tina Jonas, and General James Cartwright, vice chairman of the joint chiefs of staff.

Ranking member Judd Gregg (R-NH) was not present. After chairman Kent Conrad’s opening statement, Wayne Allard (R-CO) made a statement for the Republicans. Both senators mentioned the $70 billion in supplemental war funding as obviously incomplete and vaguely justified.

In his opening statement Conrad made a reference to an interview in the early days of the war where former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld where the former Defense secretary  said that the war was estimated at $50 billion.

The focus remained on the discrepancies between the base budget and the war funding which is separate. Both Conrad and Allard asked questions seeking a more realistic, long term projected figure. Secretary Robert Gates had made a statement with the number of $170 billion. But while England agreed with the secretary’s estimate he said that both a final war funding figure and a date on which a funding figure for ‘09 would be known depended on what Gen. Petraeus says this spring and the appropriation of $102 billion from the 2008 war supplemental budget request.

Additionally changes in the labor market, such as a decline in manufacturing and the unpredictability of the market and government budgeting, came up as a concern. General Cartwright said that these things are “challenging” and he discussed the idea of budgeting for two years.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) asked outright whether parts of the procurement section the Defense Department budget was being aimed at a future conflict with China or Russia. Secretary England said that Russian and Chinese defense systems are considered in future Defense spending but as to specific threats being considered England said that he would have to speak in a more classified setting.

Conrad said that they hoped to bring the budget to the floor by the first or second week of March.