The Obama administration is proposing a cap on war outlays through fiscal 2021, the first time spending for military combat in Afghanistan and Iraq would be limited since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001/.../
The administration is casting its proposal as a "multiyear" cap that would allow for flexibility from year to year and that could be adjusted in the event of an emergency.
Lawmakers exempted war costs from spending limits imposed under last year's budget control deal between the White House and Congress, creating what some called a "loophole" for the Pentagon to avert reductions.
Todd Harrison, a defense-spending expert at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, a think tank with close ties to the Pentagon, said the president's proposal would close the loophole and "make it harder to circumvent the budget caps."