Overview
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio is testifying in public for the first time since the Iran war began to defend the State Department’s budget and explain U.S. strategy.
- Lawmakers are pressing Rubio about the fragile ceasefire with Tehran and mixed White House statements on whether peace talks are still ongoing.
- A growing bipartisan group of Republicans has joined Democrats in questioning the war’s cost and scope, and Congress has advanced measures that could force U.S. withdrawal without White House authorization.
- Rubio must justify a plan that seeks roughly a 30% cut to diplomacy funding while requesting large increases in military spending, a split that lawmakers say raises strategic concerns.
- Members also plan to question Rubio about the administration’s tougher posture toward Cuba and the war’s economic impact, including higher gasoline prices and reduced tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.