President Biden's first defense budget is being criticized by congressional Republicans, who say it is too small, and liberal lawmakers, who say it is too big. Several Senate Republican leaders presented a united front with a joint statement, saying Biden's $753 billion defense budget proposed for fiscal year 2022 sends "a terrible signal not only to our adversaries in Beijing and Moscow, but also to our allies and partners." Biden's total defense budget, which includes the Pentagon and other federal agencies, is a 1.7% increase in funds compared with FY-21, but is actually a slight decrease in buying power when adjusted for inflation. "Talk is cheap, but defending our country is not," according to the statement released by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL), Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Marco Rubio (R-FL).
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