OAN Staff Addie Davis
11:10 AM – Wednesday, May 13, 2026
During a Tuesday hearing on the 2027 fiscal year Pentagon budget, President Donald Trump criticized Republican aide Robert Karem for an awkward interruption that he argued made Kentucky GOP Senator Mitch McConnell appear “foolish and completely out of it.”
The incident occurred as the Senate Armed Services Committee was concluding testimony from Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
As McConnell attempted to speak, Karem — a high-ranking staffer — intervened to clarify a procedural point, creating a disjointed exchange that Trump later seized upon to highlight the senator’s perceived lack of command during the proceedings.
“The vote is about over. The secretary has to get with the president on the China trip. I’m going to ask Senator Murkowski to wrap up, and thank you all for being here,” McConnell said, before being cut off.
“Baldwin, Shaheen and Kennedy still have questions,” Karem interjected, telling the senator to “wrap up after.”
After McConnell showed visible confusion, Karem spoke quietly into his ear.
“Obviously, there’s not a whole lot of time for a second round, so we’ll get through everybody, and Senator Murkowski, I appreciate you taking over,” McConnell added.
Following the hearing, the president criticized the staffer online for the intervention.
“The guy that came up to Mitch McConnell today when McConnell thought the hearing was over, and started speaking in his ear for Mitch to belatedly introduce some other people, all Democrats and, by doing so, made Mitch look foolish and completely out of it, should be immediately fired!” Trump posted to Truth Social. “This was a case where Mitch wasn’t confused, he just didn’t understand why he was being asked to do something when it was too late, and people were wrapping up to leave — They wanted to go home.”
“His name is Robert Karem, he is a Never Trumper, and was grandstanding — trying to show how ‘important’ he was! Karem has tremendous Democrat support, far greater than he should have, and is praised relentlessly by Obama’s people,” Trump said. “FIRE THE BUM!”
Karem reportedly served as the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs of the United States during Trump’s first term, before stepping down in 2018.
During the hearing, Hegseth and Caine were questioned over the Pentagon budget plan, which requested $1.5 trillion, with $350 billion of that coming through a reconciliation process, a move highlighted by McConnell at the beginning of the meeting.
“Political realities will not always allow a party-line budget reconciliation, and if the department’s top priorities aren’t built into annual appropriations, we’re actually taking a big risk,” McConnell said.
While expressing support for several core components of the budget — most notably the funding for the “Golden Dome” missile defense project and the replenishment of critical munitions — McConnell voiced apprehension regarding the underlying financing strategy.
Although he signaled his alignment with these strategic priorities, he remained skeptical of the specific mechanisms used to secure the necessary capital, particularly the administration’s reliance on a $350 billion reconciliation process to bridge the gap in the $1.5 trillion request.
“These key lines of effort only work if we put them on solid fiscal footing,” he said.
During his opening statement, General Caine highlighted the exceptional professionalism and specialized expertise of the United States Armed Forces as the foundation of national security. He emphasized that the proposed budget is essential for maintaining this edge, calling for a dual-track approach that prioritizes the rapid restoration of operational readiness alongside aggressive investment in emerging technological innovations.
Caine also argued that these accelerated rebuilding efforts are critical to ensuring the military remains capable of outpacing evolving global threats.
“Driving this pace of change requires timely, predictable capital and sustained investment,” Caine said. “The president’s budget supports the department’s goal of recharging the defense industrial base and the national industrial base.”
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