06.17.26

As Trump Requests $1.5 Trillion for Pentagon, Sens. Markey and Merkley Press for Details on “Golden Dome” $1.2 Trillion Price Tag, Mission

Letter Text (PDF) Washington (June 17, 2026) - As Congress considers President Trump’s $1.5 trillion request for Pentagon spending and SpaceX wins billions in Golden Dome contracts, Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Representatives John Garamendi (CA-08) and Don Beyer (VA-08), co-chairs of the bicameral Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control Working Group, today led their colleagues in a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, demanding further information on the … Continue Reading

---

06.16.26

Merkley Asks CBO to Detail How Investing in Flood Adaptations Can Affect the Federal Budget

Today, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, requested that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) conduct a study of how federal spending for flood adaptations now is likely to affect the federal budget. Merkley specifically asked CBO to estimate the amount of potential future savings that could accrue to the federal government for every dollar it spends on flood adaptation and mitigation. A previous CBO report published in September 2024 de… Continue Reading

---

06.16.26

ICYMI: Chairman Graham Holds Confirmation Hearing on OMB Deputy Director Nominee Hal Duncan

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, today held a hearing to consider the nomination of Hal Duncan to be the Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On a third reconciliation package: GRAHAM: “If we can’t pass a supplemental through the appropriations process dealing with defense and other matters … do you believe a third reconciliation bill focusing on defense and fraud would be justified?” DUNCAN: “Yes, sir. Abso… Continue Reading