Trump seeks $88 bn in extra funding, mostly for Iran war

US President Donald Trump asked Congress on Wednesday for nearly $88 billion in extra spending, most of it to cover the cost of the Iran war, at a moment of growing unease in both parties over the conflict and its political price.

The White House request for $87.6 billion in supplemental funding includes tens of billions of dollars for the Pentagon, as well as money for US farmers, Ebola response efforts in central Africa and domestic infrastructure projects.

The proposal landed a day after Congress passed a largely symbolic resolution calling on Trump to end US hostilities with Iran unless lawmakers explicitly authorize military action.

It also came as the administration tries to turn a preliminary agreement with Tehran into a final settlement after months of war that rattled global energy markets, pushed up prices and exposed divisions inside Trump‘s Republican Party.

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• Rubio kicks off Middle East trip as allies seek answers on Iran
• UN nuclear agency boss signals that inspectors will visit Iran’s nuclear sites
• Iran says deal to end Mideast war ‘declaration of US defeat’
• No withdrawal from southern Lebanon, even if the US demands it, says Israel’s defence minister
• Rubio says US-Iran technical talks due on June 29 or 30 in Switzerland