As Congress prepares to focus on the Federal government’s fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., said today he wants a more flexible Department of Defense (DoD) budget to keep pace with rapid technology innovation.
“The way that our services work, is we let the primes go to those in charge and … they tell them, ‘this is what we need to deliver this project for you,’ so what’s factored into the FY26 [budget] is what the prime is telling the generals and what the generals are telling the primes,” explained Sen. Mullin while speaking at Second Front’s Offset Symposium 2025 in Washington.
Rather, the senator said, “what we need is flexibility.” He emphasized, “it’s not too late … [to tell the DoD] ‘hey, give us a budget of flexibility, rather than having $500 million [go] to pet projects.’”
Sen. Mullin said that allocating more flexible funding would help DoD keep pace with emerging technologies by cutting down on slow approval processes that often lead to the Pentagon getting outdated systems by the time they’re delivered.
“If you put the warfighter in front .. .you understand it’s changing conditions constantly, and you have to be able to move, you gotta be able to pivot, you gotta be able to make decisions,” said the senator.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump proposed a $1.01 trillion defense budget that would boost Department of Defense spending by 13 percent. The proposal remains short on details, but outlines pay raises for service members and funding for the White House’s Golden Dome missile defense project.
Beyond changes to DoD spending, defense leaders should also embrace innovation by leaning into frustrations they experienced during their military service, Sen. Mullin added, encouraging them to stay focused on areas they’re passionate about and think beyond traditional chains of command.
“Risk-averse command drives me nuts, and there’s no place for risk aversion today,” said Sen. Mullin. “Go over, go through, go around whoever’s blocking you. Don’t take no for an answer, figure out a way to get to yes by going around the person who’s road blocking.”
Sen. Mullin pointed to a cultural shift toward taking more innovation-related risks, referencing recent conversations he’d had with President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. “We’re wanting change,” he said about the Trump administration’s stance on defense-related technology, calling it “a once in a lifetime generation to make true change.”