On April 3, 2026, the White House released its budget request for Fiscal Year (FY) 2027, proposing a historic $1.5 trillion in total defense spending. This represents a $445 billion (approximately 44%) increase over the FY 2026 defense funding level, building upon the $1 trillion overall defense topline enacted the previous year. If enacted, this would mark the largest increase in defense spending since the Korean War, exceeding the Reagan-era buildup of the 1980s.

Click here to read the full GT Alert.

Tags: department of war, federal budget, GT Insight, Trump administration
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Photo of Misha Lehrer˘ Misha Lehrer˘

Misha Lehrer is a national security and defense policy advisor who represents clients before Capitol Hill and the executive branch, with deep expertise before the congressional defense committees and the U.S. Department of Defense. With more than a decade of experience across both…

Misha Lehrer is a national security and defense policy advisor who represents clients before Capitol Hill and the executive branch, with deep expertise before the congressional defense committees and the U.S. Department of Defense. With more than a decade of experience across both the public and private sectors, Misha designs and executes high-impact government relations strategies with the goals of shaping federal policy, securing funding, and positioning clients for success in the defense marketplace, particularly across emerging technologies, autonomous systems, dual-use innovation, as well as clients working to achieve greater quality of life for service members and their families.

Misha is a trusted advisor to defense and national security stakeholders navigating complex legislative, regulatory, and funding environments. He leads advocacy on matters involving defense acquisition and sustainment, industrial base policy, U.S.-China strategic competition, and the integration of emerging and dual-use technologies into national security missions. He also helps commercial and venture-backed companies successfully enter and scale within the defense sector. A significant portion of his practice involves leading client strategy throughout the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes the yearly defense budget and sets policy for the Department of Defense. He also structures defense appropriations, aligning client capabilities within congressional and DOD priorities.

Misha previously served as a legislative and economic aide to U.S. senator Chris Murphy, advising on matters before the Senate Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. In that role, he led policy portfolios spanning federal funding and manufacturing, which included workforce development, economic development, Made in America policy, trade, and defense industrial base resilience. He played a key role in advancing billions of dollars in federal funding priorities through the appropriations process, including drafting legislative language and funding requests across all 12 appropriations bills. He also served as an economic advisor, delivering analysis on national and global economic conditions and shaping policy recommendations. Earlier in his career, he worked as a special assistant to the same senator and served as an intelligence fellow at a private military company and at a public policy think tank.

Misha was selected for the National Security Fellows Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in 2026. He regularly writes and speaks on defense policy, particularly analysis on the intersection of federal legislation and the defense industrial base.

˘ Not admitted to the practice of law.

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Photo of Daniel Sennott Daniel Sennott

Dan Sennott, Co-Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s National Security Group, draws on nearly three decades of national security and defense experience to provide his clients with pragmatic, actionable advice on working with the Department of War and Congress. He represents clients across the full…

Dan Sennott, Co-Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s National Security Group, draws on nearly three decades of national security and defense experience to provide his clients with pragmatic, actionable advice on working with the Department of War and Congress. He represents clients across the full spectrum of the defense industrial base in public policy, government oversight, and regulatory matters. He routinely advises companies on appropriations, acquisition policy, advanced manufacturing, dual-use emerging technology, quantum communications, drone regulation, and government contracts. Dan regularly appears before the Department of War, each of the U.S. armed services, and the congressional defense and veterans’ affairs committees. His practice draws on more than two decades of military service and senior roles in the federal government.

Dan advocates for clients on a range of defense-related regulatory and legislative matters in the national security, defense, health care, and veterans’ affairs sectors. In addition to representing large and medium sized defense contractors, he also counsels start-ups that are new entrants to the defense industrial base, providing advice on compliance, facility security clearance issues, and industrial security requirements. He also advises on congressional investigations and government oversight processes, helping clients understand and respond to the legal and policy dimensions of these proceedings.

Before entering private practice, Dan served as the minority staff director for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Armed Services, where he was responsible for the development, negotiation, and passage of the annual National Defense Authorization Act. He previously served as the minority general counsel for the same committee, advising on national security law and congressional process, and as counsel and staff lead for the Military Personnel subcommittee. Dan served in the U.S. Army for more than twenty years as an armor officer and judge advocate, with assignments as a prosecutor, law professor, legislative liaison, and chief of military personnel law. His military decorations include the Legion of Merit, two Bronze Stars, and the Meritorious Service Medal.

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