Experts: Pentagon’s 2019 budget plan headed for receptive audience on Hill

WASHINGTON — Despite questions over a ballooning U.S. deficit and other funding dramas, the 2019 military budget proposal out Monday is poised to win support on Capitol Hill, experts say.

The Pentagon released a plan seeking a 10 percent increase in funding, asking Congress for $686.1 billion next year to grow the size and might of the military, primarily in response to China and Russia’s growing capabilities.

Experts say that with a deal in place to bust statutory spending limits and Congress invested in military improvements in an election year, the budget plans are poised to win Hill support.

“The amount of the budget, I don’t expect a problem there. Everyone signed off there,” said Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. “It should be an easier year this year, assuming nothing blows up.”

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