The GOP-led House passed the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on Thursday with key conservative provisions that face long odds in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
The bill passed mostly along partisan lines in a 219-210 vote, which included amendments that prohibited funding Pentagon funding for travel for women seeking abortions and paying for transgender procedures on military service members.
“Under this bill our men and women in uniform, who make sacrifices for our nation every day, will receive the biggest pay raise in decades, radical programs that are forced on our troops at the expense of readiness are eliminated, cutting-edge technology that is essential for the future of this country and will help deter Communist China will receive more investment, and taxpayers will save $40 billion as this bill roots out wasteful spending,” House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said in a statement.
The NDAA will provide around $886 billion for military spending, which is more than the NDAA provided last year and than the Biden administration’s recommendation, according to Just the News.
“When Speaker McCarthy was elected earlier this year he promised a more open process. He kept that promise today and it resulted in the most conservative NDAA I’ve ever seen,” said Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN).
Democrats widely criticized the bill, claiming that it politicized military defense spending.
“It is woefully irresponsible that extreme MAGA Republicans have hijacked a bipartisan bill that is essential to our national security and taken it over and weaponized it in order to jam their extreme right wing ideology down the throats of the American people,” said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
“I just voted against the defense bill because it was hijacked with rightwing garbage about drag shows, book bans, and attacks on women’s freedom. Under kevin mccarthy the inmates are running the asylum,” Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) said in a tweet.
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On Thursday, several amendments that sought to limit spending for Ukraine were defeated. One, from Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), would have revoked $300 million in spending for Ukraine’s defensive effort against Russian forces, while another, from Gaetz, would have removed all security assistance for Ukraine. Greene’s amendment failed 89-341 while Gaetz’s failed 70-358.
The bill will likely face headwinds in the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats who will likely be opposed to the amendments blocking funding for abortion travel, transgender surgeries, and some DEI initiatives.
Senators are set to consider their own NDAA next week. Ultimately, the House and Senate will have to resolve any differences between their bills before an NDAA is sent to President Joe Biden for a signature.