Senator Lee questioned Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and General Martin Dempsey, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, this week in the Senate Armed Services Committee over the President's Defense Budget. Senator Lee believes one of our highest priorities for national defense, and our nation as a whole, is to decrease our federal debt through a balanced budget. The President's budget increases the national debt by the time he leaves office in 2017, and fails to provide leadership in addressing sequestration and protecting defense programs vital to our national security. Senator Lee also questioned Secretary Hagel about the recent decision to deploy 14 additional missile defense units to the West Coast, and will continue to advocate for strengthening our strategic defense against threats from North Korea and Iran.