Senate NDAA vote: GOP amendments Schumer wants to kill to get military spending bill over the line
Jack Birle
Video Embed
The National Defense Authorization Act is up for consideration in the upper chamber of Congress, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) will likely have to kill several amendments proposed by the GOP to get the military spending bill passed before Congress’s August recess.
Schumer has until Friday to get the bill passed before September, and, with some amendments passed by the Republican-led House of Representatives, it could be an uphill climb to get it passed in the Democratic-led Senate. Here are three amendments Schumer will look to kill when the Senate votes on the NDAA.
CLUB FOR GROWTH PLEDGES TO DEFEND REPUBLICANS WHO WERE CRITICAL OF MCCARTHY IN 2024
Abortion
One of the most hotly contested policies is the Department of Defense’s policy to fund travel for service members to get an abortion. Republicans have been fiercely opposed to the policy, arguing it violates the Hyde Amendment, which prevents the federal government from funding abortions with taxpayer dollars. Democrats and Biden administration officials have defended the policy, with National Security Council coordinator John Kirby saying the policy was part of the Department of Defense’s wider “foundational sacred obligation.”
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) has held up military promotions, which must be approved by the Senate, for nearly six months in protest of the policy. Schumer will allow a vote on the policy, but it seems unlikely to pass in the Democratic-controlled chamber.
Submarines
A controversial amendment looking to be brought by a member of the Senate comes from Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), which would block the transfer of submarines as part of the AUKUS security pact, per Punchbowl News. The amendment would aim to pressure President Joe Biden to ask for more defense spending despite caps that the House under GOP leadership looks to hold on to.
Schumer, along with Democratic Senate leadership, has indicated he does not want drama with the NDAA in the Senate after it had a turbulent time passing in the House.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives
Another amendment passed in the House that Schumer wants on the chopping block is an effort to cut funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in the Department of Defense. DEI has been one of the measures Democrats have supported, and its defunding in the House version of the NDAA is one of the things cited by House Democratic leadership in their reason for voting against the final bill.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The Senate is in session until Friday but is not expected to return until Sept. 5, to allow for both chambers to have their August break.
When both chambers return in September, the fiscal 2024 budget will be the hot-button subject as the divided Congress looks to avoid a government shutdown. Because of the expected focus of the annual budget for the return from the August recess, the Senate is looking to make the NDAA’s passage a chief priority.