Congress is poised to decide soon on the Pentagon’s initial $500 million request to go after the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, but the Pentagon has not begun planning its budgetary needs for the counterterrorism operation beyond that first installment.
The Obama administration’s request for the money on Tuesday delayed a House vote on the continuing resolution that would extend fiscal year 2014 funding levels through Dec. 11, and lawmakers were at first unclear whether they would consider the anti-ISIS funding with the CR or separately. Now, a congressional source told Defense Daily, the tentative plan is to vote on the $500 million as an amendment to the CR, and then vote again for final passage of the CR. Consideration would start Tuesday and likely wrap up Wednesday, leaving the Senate with Thursday and Friday to pass the same bill before lawmakers adjourn for campaign season.
The $500 million would get the military started with training and equipping moderate Syrian forces in Saudi Arabia, which agreed to provide the training grounds. Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said the Pentagon had not looked out at longer-term costs of the train-and-equip program and other elements of the strategy against ISIS, which has so far included humanitarian aid missions, air strikes and advise-and-assist forces helping the Iraqi security forces.
“It’s difficult to talk about the end when we’re still trying to get the beginning of this started, so that’s where our focus is,” Kirby said Friday in a press briefing. “Again, the secretary really wants to work with the Congress to get that money appropriated.”