Republican senators have voiced criticism of US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for repeatedly excluding Democrats from classified briefings on the defense budget, raising concerns that this approach could jeopardize the passage of former President Donald Trump’s record $1.5 trillion military budget increase.

Hegseth has made at least two trips to Capitol Hill in recent weeks to present the budget proposal but has consistently held closed-door sessions without Democratic lawmakers, according to officials from both parties.

Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, argued that Hegseth’s strategy was counterproductive. “He calls himself the secretary of war, but ironically, he doesn’t want to go to war and win the argument with nearly half the members of the Senate,” Tillis told Politico. “You got to engage.”

Much of the upcoming defense budget will require Democratic votes to pass, even if Republicans advance parts of the package through party-line reconciliation. Senate Democrats have threatened to boycott the funding bills entirely, suggesting that Hegseth’s exclusion of their representatives could undermine the administration’s spending priorities this fall.

Mike Rounds, a Republican senator from South Dakota, said he raised the issue of engaging Democrats with defense officials, noting concerns about leaks of classified material. “The Democrat members need to be brought up to speed,” Rounds told Politico.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also called for a bipartisan approach to the briefings, stating, “I know that sometimes you want to have smaller groups, but I think it needs to be bipartisan.”

The Pentagon, referred to as the Department of War in official statements, emphasized its commitment to working with Congress. Sean Parnell, the chief Pentagon spokesperson, said, “Secretary Hegseth and senior department leadership regularly engage with lawmakers to discuss the defense budget, readiness, and national security priorities.”

This dispute follows remarks Hegseth made in April to the US House of Representatives armed services committee, where he described congressional Democrats as among the “biggest impediment” to preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. He said, “The biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans.”