WASHINGTON: The Senate and House Armed Services Committees ignored President Trump’s threats to veto the 2021 defense policy bill and pushed the legislation toward votes next week — and a possible showdown with the White House.
Overall, the bill authorizes $635.5 billion for the base Pentagon budget and $26.6 billion for the Energy Department to spend on nuclear weapons. And, despite the planned drawdown of US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Hill also blessed another $69 billion for war-related Overseas Contingency Operations accounts.
The House is expected to vote on the bill Monday or Tuesday; the Senate will follow soon after, according to congressional aides.
One of the biggest adds was inclusion of funding for two Virginia-class submarines, as well as advanced procurement money so the Navy can continue constructing two submarines each year. The Navy only asked for a single Virginia-class submarine in its ‘21 budget request and placed the second ship on its annual unfunded wish list.
Several lawmakers pressed for the increased build rate, citing concerns over the coming retirement of older submarines and the need to keep the industrial base primed for an expected uptick in shipbuilding in the coming years.
In late November, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget signed off on the second sub in 2021, championed by Rep. Joe Courtney, who represents the district in Connecticut where Electric Boat will build the boats. “I’m pleased that the Trump Administration has finally recognized what the House of Representatives and the Department of the Navy already knew—the decision to fund a second Virginia-class submarine and to sustain the two-a-year build rate is in the best interest of our national security,” he said in a statement.
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Lawmakers also supported establishing a new, multi-billion dollar Pacific Deterrence Initiative. Breaking Defense was the first to report on the initiative to increase the number of training ranges in the Pacific and improve infrastructure across the region, which PACOM leader Adm. Philip Davidson floated this summer. The NDAA approved $2.2 billion to kick off the effort.
The move “will send a strong signal to China and any potential adversaries, as well as to our allies and partners, that America is deeply committed to defending our interests in the region,” a Senate Armed Services Committee bill summary says.
The bill also creates a Senate-confirmed National Cyber Director and the Office of the National Cyber Director within the White House to serve as the President’s principal cyber advisor and provide a central clearinghouse for cybersecurity issues within the Executive Branch.
House and Senate aides expressed real bipartisan satisfaction with the bill in a call with reporters Thursday night, though President Trump remains a wildcard in the process.
The president has pledged to veto the bill over two issues: his desire to repeal a law that protects social media companies from lawsuits, and language in the bill that would start a process to rename Army bases that honor Confederate generals.
The president targeted longtime ally Sen. Jim Inhofe in two tweets Thursday night over the bill’s failure to bend to his wishes, writing, “Very sadly for our Nation, it looks like Senator @JimInhofe will not be putting the Section 230 termination clause into the Defense Bill. So bad for our National Security and Election Integrity. Last chance to ever get it done. I will VETO!”
A senior Republican Senate Armed Services Committee aide said, “we’re definitely not looking at what to do about a veto, because we’re still hoping there won’t be a veto.”
A Democratic aide was more direct. “This is the bill,” they told reporters on Thursday evening. “The leadership of the House and Senate will decide how they’re going to react, should the president do something other than sign the bill into law.” President Trump has threatened vetoes of previous NDAAs and always backed off.
Congress also expressed its misgivings with some administration moves. The bill halts the reduction of troops stationed in Germany and South Korea below current levels unless Congress is fully consulted beforehand. In July, DoD made the surprise announcement that 12,000 troops would be pulled from Germany, angering lawmakers who see the overseas US presence as a downpayment on US security.
The NDAA demands the defense secretary consults Congress at least 120 days before attempting to reduce troop levels in Germany below 34,500, and 90 days before any reduction in South Korea below 28,500.
The European Command is still studying the feasibility of moving those troops in Europe to other bases, but no decisions have been made. It’s not clear what the Biden Defense Department will have to say about the moves, but given the diplomatic and logistical lift required to establish new basing agreements — and Congressional opposition — it’s likely they may walk away from the plan.
The bill also bill directs the president to impose sanctions against Turkey for its purchase of S-400 missile systems from Russia within 30 days. The Trump administration has refused to slap Ankara with the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act due to the purchase, a failure which has rankled lawmakers from both sides of the aisle.