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The Senate sent a colossal defense package to President Donald Trump’s desk on Wednesday, checking off one of the last remaining items of the year in the process.
Lawmakers banded together to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a roughly $901 billion package crammed to the brim with defense policy that unlocks funding for several of the Trump administration’s national defense priorities.
The measure passed through the upper chamber on a 77-20 bipartisan vote. It’s a perennial legislative exercise lawmakers undertake, and one that normally comes and goes with little fuss, given that Congress typically bookends the year with it.
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But this year, the NDAA hit some snags in the House that threatened its survival. And while the drama was not as fiery in the Senate, there were still lingering issues with certain provisions that gave lawmakers heartburn.
Bipartisan frustration erupted over a provision that would roll back some safety standards in the Washington, D.C., airspace. It comes on the heels of the collision between a Black Hawk helicopter and passenger jet near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport earlier this year that killed 67 people.
Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz, R-Texas, sought an amendment to the package that would have stripped the provision and instead included his ROTOR Act that would mandate technology in aircraft to boost awareness of air traffic.
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But any amendment to the package would have sent it back to the House. Cruz instead plans to tack on his legislation to spending bills down the line.
“I’m seeking a vote on the ROTOR Act as part of any appropriations measure before the current continuing resolution expires at the end of next month,” Cruz said.
Other provisions, like a requirement for the Pentagon to release the unedited footage of boat strikes in the Caribbean in exchange for fully funding the Department of War’s travel fund, raised eyebrows but didn’t slow down the package’s success.
That provision comes as lawmakers demand more transparency in the Trump administration’s strikes against alleged drug boats, and in particular, as they seek the release of the footage from a Sept. 2 double-strike on a vessel.
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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed all senators on the strikes this week. Senate Republicans left largely satisfied, while Senate Democrats charged that Hegseth wouldn’t show the unedited footage to every lawmaker in the upper chamber.
“He refused,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said. “The administration came to this briefing empty-handed. That’s the major question that we face, and if they can’t be transparent on this, how can you trust their transparency on all the other issues swirling about in the Caribbean.”
Still, the package is filled with several provisions that both sides agree to, including guarantees for Ukrainian assistance, and repeals of the 1991 and 2002 authorizations of use of military force (AUMFs) for the Gulf War and Iraq War, respectively, among several others.
With the NDAA now headed for Trump’s signature, the Senate still has more on its agenda before fleeing Washington until the new year.
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Senate Republicans want to ram through nearly 100 of Trump’s nominees, and both sides are eyeing a five-bill spending package that could alleviate some concerns heading into the looming Jan. 30 deadline to fund the government.
“This defense authorization act, although it doesn’t have as much in there for defense as a lot of us would like, is a step in the right direction,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said. “And I think the defense appropriations bill, which hopefully we’ll vote on later this week, is another example of the investment that we need to be making, to ensure that in a dangerous world, we are prepared to defend America and American interests.”
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