US House Approves $610 Billion Military Budget

The US House of Representatives has passed a $610 billion military budget to fund Pentagon programs and US-led military conflicts. The bill, approved in a 277-147 bipartisan vote on Wednesday, sets the Pentagon’s base budget at $551 billion while giving it another $59 billion for overseas contingency operations, in other words, war funding. Press TV reports: On Monday, the White House threatened to veto the bill over the Republican attempts to shift $18 billion from the war fund to cover expenses in the base military budget. Republicans argue that the money is needed to address a military readiness crisis affecting 27,000 active-duty troops and about 25,000 reservists and pay for aircraft and ships requested by the services. The legislation prohibits the US Army from falling below 480,000 active-duty soldiers and proposes a 2.1 percent pay raise for troops, a half-percentage point  more than 1.6 percent raise proposed by the government. The White House firmly opposes reducing the war fund, arguing that it would weaken the US military in conflict zones and turn it into a hollow force, with Defense Secretary Ashton Carter describing the strategy as a “road to nowhere.” However, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry said that the [...]