Defense Budget Analysis

The Defense Budget Analysis Program leads the Center’s efforts to provide in-depth, nonpartisan research and analysis of defense funding issues

Led by fellow Seamus Daniels, the program explores trends in the overall defense budget, military readiness, force structure, defense acquisitions, and military compensation in a broader effort to assess the alignment of the country’s defense strategy and its resources.

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Photo: Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto/Getty Images

Photo: Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto/Getty Images

Defense Budgets in an Uncertain Security Environment

Uncertainty in the current global security environment since the start of the Ukraine war has increased global defense spending as states perceive themselves to be at greater risk. But political and fiscal realities will also shape future defense spending levels.

Commentary by Seamus P. Daniels — September 16, 2025

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Audio Briefs

What a Government Shutdown Would Mean for Defense Funding in FY 2026

An audio version of “⁠What a Government Shutdown Would Mean for Defense Funding in FY 2026,⁠” a new Critical Questions by CSIS’s Seamus P. Daniels. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs. 

Podcast Episode by Seamus P. Daniels — September 30, 2025

Audio Briefs

What a Government Shutdown Would Mean for Defense Funding in FY 2026

With Congress failing to pass a continuing resolution to start FY 2026, the Department of Defense faces a shutdown until legislators take action to fund the federal government. Seamus Daniels explains the implications for the Department of Defense.

Critical Questions by Seamus P. Daniels — September 30, 2025

War and the Modern Battlefield: Insights from Ukraine and the Middle East

The United States faces one of the most dangerous international security environments in recent history. While some aspects of warfare remain perennial, the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are showing how others are rapidly evolving on the modern battlefield.

Digital Report by The CSIS Defense and Security Department — September 16, 2025

Defense Budgets in an Uncertain Security Environment

Uncertainty in the current global security environment since the start of the Ukraine war has increased global defense spending as states perceive themselves to be at greater risk. But political and fiscal realities will also shape future defense spending levels.

Commentary by Seamus P. Daniels — September 16, 2025

Audio Briefs

Defense Budgets in an Uncertain Security Environment

An audio version of “⁠Defense Budgets in an Uncertain Security Environment⁠,” a new commentary by CSIS’s Seamus P. Daniels. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs. 

Podcast Episode by Seamus P. Daniels — September 16, 2025

Audio Briefs

Trump Restructures the Pentagon Budget: Two Views

Who should win and lose under Secretary Hegseth’s direction to reallocate 8 percent of DOD’s budget? CSIS experts Mark Cancian and Melissa Dalton took very different approaches in a recent exercise: a global focus (Cancian) versus the implications of the administration's strategy (Dalton).

Report by Mark F. Cancian and Melissa Dalton — April 16, 2025

Dept. of Defense Faces Shutdown Amid Continuing Resolution Uncertainty

On March 14, the current continuing resolution (CR) funding the Department of Defense (DOD) and the rest of the federal government for FY 2025 will expire, and a government shutdown will take effect on March 15 at midnight if Congress does not act. On Tuesday, March 11, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1968 to extend the CR through the end of FY 2025 on September 30, but Senate Democrats oppose the measure in favor of a short-term CR. 

Analysis by Seamus P. Daniels — March 13, 2025

Audio Briefs

What a Government Shutdown Would Mean for Defense Funding in FY 2025

An audio version of “What a Government Shutdown Would Mean for Defense Funding in FY 2025,” a new Critical Questions by CSIS's Seamus Daniels. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs.

Podcast Episode by Seamus P. Daniels — March 13, 2025

Audio Briefs