China, Russia threats forced Inhofe to support $1.3T spending bill
Rep. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., discusses how the $1.3 trillion spending bill benefits the military and why he supports President Trump’s tariffs against China.
The acting chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee told FOX Business he would have voted against the $1.3 trillion spending package if not for the threats against the United States by China and Russia.
“It’s a terrible bill,” Rep. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said. “I give anything if I can vote against it.”
On Thursday, the House approved a spending deal that will fund the government through September, avoiding Friday’s government shutdown deadline.
Inhofe said the U.S. military is falling behind while China is accelerating its defense program as if it is preparing for war.
“They’re all as if you’re preparing for World War III,” Inhofe said.
Critics of the spending bill are questioning the deal providing for a military buildup in exchange for billions of dollars for domestic programs.
Inhofe said the tradeoff is a matter of survival and voting against the spending bill is voting against the U.S. military.
“We are facing real threats,” he said. “This whole idea of what’s happening over there with Kim Jong Un in North Korea … But then we have China on the other side, and they are building up, and they are ahead of us,” he said.
The Senate is expected to vote tonight on the $1.3 trillion spending bill.