The numbers were presented in the same hearing, which is what makes them comparable. On July 21, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General John Caine told the Senate Appropriations Committee that the Iran war has cost $37.5 billion so far, and asked for $67.1 billion more [1].
The full White House supplemental is $87.6 billion, 77 percent of it to the Defense Department - which is currently holding $75 billion it has not spent, out of the $156 billion it received in last year's reconciliation bill [1].
'The military requires a generational investment to deliver on peace through strength,' Hegseth said [1]. Senator Patty Murray, who raised the unspent balance, said the committee 'would not rubber stamp a request to bankroll this war' [1]. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand put the trade-off in her own terms: 'You're asking for $1.5 trillion, unlimited money for bombs, but insufficient money for the American people' [1].
Two days later, Congress voted on whether the war should continue at all, and split. The House passed H. Con. Res. 89 by 214 to 208, directing the president to remove US forces from hostilities with Iran; four Republicans - Barrett, Davidson, Fitzpatrick and Massie - voted yes [3].
In the Senate, the motion to discharge S.J.Res. 180 from committee failed 47 to 49, with Susan Collins the only Republican in favour and John Fetterman the only Democrat against. Four senators did not vote: Britt, McConnell, Murkowski and Paul [2].
The House resolution does not go to the president's desk and carries no force of law. The Senate's binding version never reached a vote on the merits.
The position, as of this weekend, is that one chamber has formally instructed the president to stop, the other declined by two votes to debate whether he must, and the department prosecuting the war has asked for $67.1 billion on top of $75 billion it has not yet spent [1][2][3].
