Senate Passes $900 Billion Defense Policy Bill, Sending It to Trump

The Senate passed the annual National Defense Authorization Act on Wednesday by a vote of 77-20, sending a roughly $900 billion defense policy bill to President Trump for his signature, according to CBS News and Al Jazeera. Senators approved the version the House had already passed. CBS described it as an annual must-pass measure running more than 3,000 pages.

Among its provisions, CBS reported a 3.8 percent pay raise for all service members. Al Jazeera reported that it repeals the 1991 Gulf War and 2003 Iraq war authorizations and permanently lifts sanctions on Syria; CBS described it as rolling back the legal justifications for the 1991 and 2003 Iraq actions and repealing Syria sanctions. Al Jazeera reported that supporters from both parties said the repeals reduce the risk of military action without explicit congressional approval, and that the Syria change permanently lifts sanctions imposed under Bashar al-Assad.

On Ukraine, the bill authorizes $400 million in military assistance in each of the next two fiscal years, according to both outlets. Al Jazeera added that a further $400 million a year is approved for manufacturing weapons for Ukraine, and that $1 billion goes to the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative and $600 million to security assistance for Israel.

The bill limits the administration’s ability to reduce U.S. troop levels in Europe, according to both outlets. Al Jazeera reported that the Pentagon must keep at least 76,000 soldiers there unless NATO allies are consulted and the administration determines a cut serves the national interest, and that a similar provision bars cutting troops in South Korea below 28,500.

Parts of the bill align with Trump administration priorities. CBS reported that it aims to write more than a dozen of Trump’s executive orders into law, prohibits diversity, equity and inclusion programs at the Defense Department, authorizes active-duty troops on the U.S.-Mexico border and authorizes a “Golden Dome” missile defense shield. Al Jazeera reported that the House Armed Services Committee said eliminating the diversity offices saves about $40 million, and that the bill cuts $1.6 billion from Pentagon climate-related programs, which the administration and Republican leaders say frees money for immediate capabilities.

Congress also used the bill to press Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for information. CBS reported that part of his travel budget is withheld until the Pentagon provides footage of strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats near Venezuela. Al Jazeera said the Defense Department must give Congress more information on such strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, and that some Democrats said they were not briefed in advance on parts of the campaign.

CBS reported that the National Transportation Safety Board chair, Jennifer Homendy, said a provision in the bill on military aircraft in Washington airspace “does not in any way enhance safety” and “essentially gives the military unfettered access to the crowded and complex D.C. airspace,” after a January midair collision between a military helicopter and a passenger jet that killed 67 people. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, passed a separate fix, the ROTOR Act, by unanimous consent Wednesday and said he was optimistic it would be signed into law as soon as next month, CBS reported.

Sen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republican who chairs the Armed Services Committee, praised the bill, saying “This will be the 65th year in a row, the 65th consecutive year that Congress has come together across the aisle,” CBS reported. Neither outlet identified the 20 senators who voted no or their reasons; CBS noted that Ukraine aid had drawn conservative pushback during the House fight over the bill.