The Senate passed a massive defense bill on Friday that allocates a whopping $750 billion of the federal government’s budget for the fiscal year 2020 to U.S. national security.
The 973-page National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed in the Senate by a vote of 86–8. The bill still has to pass the House before it will make its way to President Donald Trump’s desk.
“It would be difficult to overstate the importance of this legislation to the ongoing missions of our nation’s men and women in uniform,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said of the bill.
He went on to laud the NDAA for being “simultaneously a target to guide the modernization of our all-volunteer force, a supply line to restore readiness and keep U.S. personnel equipped with the most cutting-edge lethal capabilities, a promise of critical support services to military families, and a declaration to both our allies and adversaries of America’s strategic resolve.”
Just a bill
A version of the NDAA has passed Congress in each of the last 58 years — but we aren’t there just yet. A separate bill may be introduced in the House next month, which would require a reconciliation process to take place that could change parts of the bill before it is signed into law.
Additionally, the bill as is doesn’t address all military spending issues. A separate vote on a provision that would prevent Trump from attacking Iran without congressional approval is scheduled for Friday, though it is not expected to have the required 60 votes for passage.
Voting separately is an unusual procedure, but the amendment might have hurt the bipartisan nature of the bill and even harmed its chances of passing. Trump received widespread criticism this month for both planning airstrikes on Iran and pulling out of the mission at the last minute because of high casualty numbers, and Congress is reportedly worried that tensions with Iran will intensify in the near future.
International drama
While it didn’t solve the Iran problem, the Senate’s bill did receive bipartisan support despite including provisions that tightened restrictions on Russia and China, like closer scrutiny of student visas. For its part, China was unhappy with the legislation and urged the U.S. to remove provisions that it perceives as negative toward its interests.
“Once the bill becomes law, it will harm Sino-U.S. relations, and interfere with, and damage, cooperation in some important areas,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said.
For his part, President Trump plans to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the G-20 Summit on Saturday. The two leaders hope to resolve trade tensions that have led Trump to place tariffs on $250 billion in Chinese goods.
Besides the student visa restrictions, the NDAA bill as the Senate passed it would prevent federal funds from going to Chinese state-owned companies. This provision could impact a number of industries, including passenger trains.
The NDAA as written also strengthens sanctions against North Korea, including secondary sanctions on companies that do business with them. And according to Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), that should help all Americans sleep better at night.
“When we’re dealing with rogue regimes like Iran and North Korea, it’s easier to sleep at night knowing that our military is fully funded and equipped to respond to any possible threats,” Kennedy said in support of the legislation.
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