The Senate overwhelmingly approved a compromise $768 billion defense policy bill, sending a bipartisan rebuke of Biden's original Pentagon request back to him for his signature
The Senate overwhelmingly approved a compromise $768 billion defense policy bill on Wednesday, sending a bipartisan rebuke of President Joe Biden's original Pentagon plans back to him for his signature.
The legislation — which has become law each year for six decades — is the product of frantic year-end negotiations between congressional defense leaders after the Senate was mired in a partisan stalemate over amendment votes on China and Russia policy. With the upper chamber failing to pass its own version of the bill this month, leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services committees scrambled to forge a compromise to salvage the legislation and pass it before the end of the year.
Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate joined forces to push the bill's budget topline by $25 billion. Many lawmakers argued Biden's $715 billion request for the Pentagon portion of the budget, though still an increase from the previous level locked in during the Trump administration, should be much higher to keep up with inflation and match military gains made by China and Russia.
The bill's budget boost includes more weapons purchases, increased research and development efforts and larger programs aimed at countering China and Russia. While the reforms were praised by many advocates, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand opposed the bill and argued the changes don't go far enough. Gillibrand has long pushed to remove the prosecution of all felonies from military commanders. Her legislation was included in the Senate defense bill, but dropped in the negotiations in favor of reforms focused largely on sex crimes that hew closer to what the House approved and what Pentagon brass have said they prefer.
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