Defense spending schism
CQ Budget, Episode No. 321
![Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, is pushing for a defense spending increase that would bust last year's budget caps agreement.](/app/uploads/2024/06/austin_presser_249_011124-1.jpg)
The House is set to pass a defense policy bill that would authorize a 1 percent spending increase, but Senate Republicans are pushing for a bigger defense increase that would bust a budget cap set last year. CQ Roll Call’s Caroline Coudriet and David Lerman preview the coming battle over defense spending and the legislative action in both chambers on their competing versions of the annual defense authorization bill.