Where’s My Posse?: The President has this idea that the military should have a domestic role in restoring order after disasters—natural or otherwise. Lawmakers are pursuing the idea as well. Republican Sen. John Warner of Virginia has asked the Pentagon to review the legal precedents. (DR, 9/16/05) Rumsfeld maintains that it’s a question for Congress and the President. “We do those things that we’re authorized to do and are instructed to do,” he says. Still, he told reporters that DOD does “have an obligation and a responsibility and a capability and a capacity in that regard.” However, “the trigger” lies elsewhere, he says.
The Pentagon is counting on Congress to navigate a legislative tightrope and pass a party-line bill to fund nearly a quarter of its $1.5 trillion budget request for fiscal 2027, including billions of dollars for top priorities like Golden Dome, the F-35, munitions, and unmanned systems. Experts and lawmakers from…