Happy Friday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Ellen Mitchell, and here is your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill, and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.
THE TOPLINE: President Trump
Donald John Trump Pelosi says Trump’s decision to reverse the fair housing rule is a “betrayal of our nation’s founding values.” Trump says he would consider pardons for those involved in the Mueller investigation. Fauci says he and his family have experienced “serious threats” during the pandemic. MORE He said Friday that a key Republican senator has vowed to ensure that the requirement to rename Confederate-named military bases is removed from the annual defense policy bill, even though the fate of that provision is now in the hands of bipartisan negotiators.
“I spoke to the respected Senator (President) @JimInhofe, who informed me that he will NOT change the names of our great Military Bases and Forts, places from which we won two World Wars (and more!” Trump tweeted). , referring to the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee James Inhofe (R-Okla.).
“Like me, Jim doesn’t believe in ‘Cancel Culture,'” Trump added.
Inhofe’s position: When asked for more information about the conversation, an Inhofe spokeswoman told The Hill in an email that the “tweet speaks for itself.” The spokeswoman did not return a follow-up request to clarify what Inhofe told Trump.
In an interview with his home state newspaper published on Friday, Inhofe promised to delete the provision.
“We will ensure that this provision does not survive the bill,” Inhofe told Oklahoman. “I’m not going to say how right now.”
Provisions in both bills: Both the House of Representatives and the Senate this week approved versions of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would require the Pentagon to rename bases and other properties named after Confederate leaders. The Senate bill would require changes in three years, while the House bill would force changes in one year.
The House and Senate must now form a conference committee to resolve the differences between the two versions of the bill. Because both versions include a requirement to rename bases, it is considered highly unlikely that they will be removed from the invoice.
Trump’s threat: Trump has threatened to veto the NDAA if the final version that reaches his desk requires name changes, and the White House said in a statement this week that the provision is “part of a sustained effort to erase the nation’s history from those who don’t meet an ever-changing standard of conduct. “
A change of heart ?: Both bills passed their respective chambers with more than two-thirds approval needed to override a presidential veto, although Republicans may be able to change their votes to maintain a veto.
But the requirement had bipartisan support in both houses of Congress, and Democrats are unlikely to back down.
Short in details: Asked how Inhofe assured Trump that he could remove the language when the NDAA overwhelmingly passed in the House and Senate, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said he “would leave that” for the senator solve it.
“I will leave that to Senator Inhofe as to how that works legislatively, but Senator Inhofe assured him that would be changing and the Republicans supported the President in this,” McEnany said.
As chair of the Armed Services Committee, Inhofe will be a key negotiator on the final version of the bill. Previously, he expressed his opposition to the name change of the bases and indicated that he would work to dilute the language in the conference negotiations.
TRUMP CANCELS THE GUN CONTROL PACT TO SELL BIGGER ARMED DRONES: Trump this week signed a measure to allow US defense contractors to bypass a 33-year-old arms deal and sell more armed drones to foreign military personnel, a State Department official told reporters on Friday.
The Trump administration has chosen to circumvent part of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), a 1987 agreement between 35 countries to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons, to allow American companies to sell drones to foreign governments that previously they were forbidden to buy them.
The new policy will help US allies and partners meet “urgent national security and trade requirements,” according to Clarke Cooper, assistant secretary of the State Department for political-military affairs.
Meanwhile, the White House said in a statement on Friday that the pact is outdated and provides “an unfair advantage to countries outside of the MTCR and hurts US industry.”
The rules before: Currently, only England, France and Australia can buy larger armed drones from American manufacturers.
The new policy: Under the new policy, drones Flying at speeds below 800 kilometers per hour are no longer subject to the stringent covenant rules, opening the international sale of MQ-9 Reaper by General Atomics and RQ-4 Global Hawk by Northrop Grumman.
A dangerous change?: Critics of the change say the change could cause a dangerous increase in ballistic missiles and cause other countries, including Russia, to undermine the deals and pick and choose rules to their advantage.
Senior Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Bob Menéndez (DN.J.) said the new policy was a “reckless decision” that “makes it more likely that we will export some of our deadliest weapons to rapists of human rights worldwide. “
“Ignoring this policy is now likely to weaken the credibility and influence of the MTCR overall, which also coordinates international controls on the sale and spread of dangerous ballistic missiles and technology worldwide,” Menéndez said in a statement.
Defense companies on board: Meanwhile, US defense companies have lobbied for the change, as it would allow them to offer their products in markets currently claimed by Chinese and Israeli contractors, whose governments do not participate in the MTCR.
Cooper insisted that the new rules will not allow the delivery of “weapons of mass destruction”, since high-speed systems, including cruise missiles, hypersonic air vehicles and advanced unmanned combat aerial vehicles “are not seen. affected by this review. “
A pattern: The measure adds to the growing list of international treaties or agreements that the United States has evaded or withdrawn during Trump’s tenure, including the arms control pact between Russia and the United States known as the Open Skies Treaty, the Nuclear Forces of Intermediate Range Treaty, the Paris climate agreement and the nuclear agreement with Iran.
The administration also has to agree with Russia to renew the new START treaty, which will expire in February.
ICYMI
– The Hill: United States confirms that the fighter flew near the Iranian airliner to ‘inspect’ it
– The Hill: Marine assigned to Trump’s helicopter squad tests positive for COVID-19
– The Hill: Air Force Denies Surveillance Plane Gathered Information About Protests When Flying Over Portland
– The Hill: Senior Intelligence Official Warns Russia, Iran, and China Aim for US Elections
– The Hill: Democrats say intelligence assessment of foreign electoral inference doesn’t go “far enough”
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