Pete Hegseth: “As you have seen and the media has obsessed over, I have fired a number of senior officers since taking over.”

There is a cost to doing very difficult things, to going out and defending your country, and ensuring radical Islamist crazies don’t get a nuclear weapon.

Current and future training would have to be curtailed if the Pentagon does not get its budget needs met urgently.

Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls that threaten our ability to also simply pay our service members, rapidly replenish equipment and munitions, and sustain vital operations without disruption.

Standalone Article II authorities exist for us to conduct this operation on behalf of the defense of the American people.