OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
9:27 AM – Thursday, March 19, 2026
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth confirmed that the Pentagon asked the White House to approve a request to Congress for $200 billion for the ongoing military actions in Iran, labeled Operation Epic Fury, which began on February 28th.
“As far as $200 billion, I think that number could move. Obviously, it takes money to kill bad guys, so we’re going back to Congress and our folks there to ensure that we’re properly funded for what’s been done, for what we may have to do in the future, ensure that our ammunition is, everything’s refilled, and not just refilled, but above and beyond,” Hegseth told reporters at a Pentagon briefing on Thursday morning. “I mean, President Trump, as he said, rebuilt the military in his first term, didn’t think he’d use it as dynamically in his second, but he had. So thank goodness he did that.”
The amount requested is much higher than what the U.S. is believed to have actually spent in its campaign to cripple the Iranian regime and its military capabilities. Pentagon told Congress that as of March 5th, less than a week into combat, the U.S. had spent about $11.3 billion on the operation, though two weeks have passed since then. This may indicate that Hegseth plans to build up America’s defenses on a wider scale that goes beyond the operation in Iran.
“An investment like this is meant to say, ‘Hey, we’ll replace anything that was spent.’ And now … we’re reviving our defense industrial base and rebuilding the arsenal of freedom,” Hegseth added.
It’s unclear if the White House will approve the request or not and pass it along to Congress. Both chambers have appeared split over the ask, with Democrats in opposition and Republicans generally in support.
“Whether you agree or disagree with Iran, look, we are perilously low on some of the ammunition stocks that we would need if — God forbid, and nobody wants this — we got into a confrontation in the Western Pacific with the Chinese,” House Appropriations Committee Chairman Representative Tom Cole (R-Okla.) told The New York Post previously.
“At the height of combat the Iraq War cost around $140 Billion per year. If the Pentagon is asking for $200 billion they are asking for a long war,” Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), an Iraq War veteran, said Wednesday on X. “The answer is a simple no.”
Hegseth praised Trump for supporting the U.S. military, as opposed to former President Joe Biden, who sent arms from U.S. stockpiles to Ukraine in its ongoing war against Russia.
“Ultimately, we think these munitions are better spent in our own interests at this point,” the secretary declared.
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