Amid War in Iran and Funding Ukraine, Rubio Tells Congress the State Department is ‘America First’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday to testify about his 2027 “America First” State Department budget request.

While most department budgets increase significantly, this is the second consecutive year the State Department continues to make significant cuts, no longer operating as “the world’s ATM.”

“Our foreign policy is one that is solely focused on the interests of the United States of America,” Rubio told the committee. Rubio’s request for a $35.6 billion budget is a 30% decrease from the $51.1 billion enacted in fiscal year 2026.

This effort reflects the Trump administration’s efforts to limit unnecessary global spending and a “bloated bureaucracy.” Most of the spending cuts have been in the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and grants to nongovernmental organizations, as well as shrinking the department workforce significantly.

Chairman Jim Risch, R-Idaho, began the hearing by congratulating Rubio for implementing this agenda “quite well.” The senator supported the cuts and said the United States is no longer “the world’s ATM.”

Rubio agreed, saying, “The United States government is not a charity.”

The secretary is familiar with this committee, last appearing before members prior to the war in Iran. Rubio is also a former senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The secretary will continue his budget justification tour and will appear before three more committees this week.

On Tuesday, members began challenging him on nearly every issue, including the war in Iran, funding for Ukraine, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the recent Ebola outbreak in Africa, artificial intelligence, actions against drug cartels in the South Pacific, and his cuts to the department.

U.S. operations in Iran are still underway. The ceasefire continues, but the Strait of Hormuz, crucial for global oil exports, remains closed. The Department of War has increased its budget request 44% to $1.5 trillion, breaking records as the largest increase since the Korean War. It also will likely need supplemental funding to support the war in Iran.

In late April, the Pentagon told the House Armed Services Committee that it had spent $25 billion on the war. Since then, however, reports indicate it could have reached nearly $35 billion.

While the administration is operating by putting America first, Rubio said the United States government needs to be involved in strategic actions abroad “on behalf of American interests.”

“Sometimes in foreign policy the choices are not between a good choice and a bad choice—it’s between two less-than-ideal choices,” Rubio said, standing by decisions he has made as secretary.

Congress is set to vote on, and will likely pass, another funding authorization bill to loan Ukraine an additional $8 billion this week. This would bring the total U.S. aid to Ukraine to nearly $200 billion since 2022.