The Senate on Monday began debating the 2014 defense bill, with one top Republican taking direct aim at the idea of continuing sequestration spending cuts in the military, David Hawkings writes in Roll Call.

Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the forced cuts were “exacerbating an already-declining national security budget.” He noted that the leaders of all four branches of the armed services had testified before both the House and Senate armed services committees that sequestration was devastating the military’s readiness.