Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth returns to Capitol Hill Thursday for another round of intense questioning from lawmakers, as senators prepare to challenge or defend his management of the ongoing Iran conflict.
The Defense Secretary endured nearly six hours of contentious questioning Wednesday before the House Armed Services Committee, where both Democratic and Republican lawmakers pressed him on the financial burden of the war, casualty figures, and depleting supplies of essential military equipment.
Thursday’s Senate Armed Services Committee session will include discussion of the Trump administration’s proposed 2027 defense budget, seeking to increase military spending to an unprecedented $1.5 trillion. Hegseth will appear alongside Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine to advocate for expanded drone capabilities, enhanced missile defense infrastructure, and additional naval vessels.
In other developments, a federal appeals court Wednesday declined to reconsider an $83 million defamation judgment against President Trump involving magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals refused to hold an “en banc” hearing months after Trump challenged a separate $5 million verdict in favor of Carroll at the Supreme Court level.
Carroll’s legal representative, Roberta Kaplan, expressed her client’s desire to conclude the litigation that began in 2019. “She is eager for this case, originally filed in 2019, to be over so that she can finally obtain justice,” Kaplan stated.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats criticized the Trump administration’s environmental policies during Wednesday hearings, condemning proposed cuts that would slash the EPA’s budget by half. Administrator Lee Zeldin defended the reductions during his third budget hearing this week, having already overseen staff reductions to historically low levels.
Zeldin has dismantled major climate initiatives, advanced what he describes as America’s most significant deregulation effort, and terminated billions in Biden-era environmental justice funding to eliminate what he calls “EPA’s radical diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.”
Oil markets reacted sharply Thursday as Brent crude briefly exceeded $126 per barrel amid stalled U.S.-Iran negotiations. The uncertainty surrounding Strait of Hormuz reopening and potential war resolution drove June Brent crude up 3.3% to $121.90, while U.S. benchmark crude rose 1.3% to $108.28. Before the conflict began in late February, Brent traded around $70 per barrel.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced Wednesday his intention to remain on the Fed board following the end of his chairmanship next month, citing concerns about Trump administration attacks on central bank independence. “I worry these attacks are battering this institution and putting at risk the things that really matter to the public,” Powell said during a press conference after the Fed maintained current interest rates.
Powell’s decision to stay as a governor until potentially January 2028 prevents Trump from appointing another ally to the seven-member board. The Senate Banking Committee has already approved Trump nominee Kevin Warsh as Powell’s replacement on a party-line vote.
Returning to Thursday’s Senate hearing, Hegseth and Caine will likely face additional scrutiny regarding European troop deployments after President Trump threatened Wednesday to reduce U.S. military presence in Germany during his dispute with Chancellor Friedrich Merz over Iran war strategy.
