The House voted Monday to override Donald Trump’s veto on a $ 740.5 billion defense policy bill. If the Senate follows suit as expected in the final days of Trump’s presidency, it will be the first time that one of his vetoes has been overcome.
The vote was 322-87, easily surpassing the two-thirds threshold required to override a veto, with the support of a majority of Democrats and Republicans. The 212 Democrats and an independent vote to overturn Trump were joined by 109 Republicans. The Senate plans to begin its override process on Tuesday, and the final vote will be delayed until Jan.3 if some senators insist on exhausting the legislative process.
Trump vetoed the annual measure because he wanted to attach an unrelated provision to remove Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects technology companies from liability for most content posted by their users. He also disagreed with the bill because it contains a provision to change the name of military installations that honor Confederate generals. In his veto message, Trump called the bill a “gift” to China and Russia without clearly articulating his reasoning.
“The President must end his 11th-hour campaign of chaos and stop using his last moments in office to obstruct bipartisan and bicameral action to protect our military and defend our security,” said the Speaker of the House of Representatives. , Nancy Pelosi, in a statement after the vote.
Voting to override Trump’s veto reflects a widening gap between the president and some Republicans in Congress, who supported him in previous conflicts, as his influence diminishes. More Republican lawmakers have recognized Joe Biden as the winner of the presidential election in recent weeks, and many of them oppose Trump’s call for higher stimulus payments as part of pandemic relief.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, said in an interview that the rejection of the defense bill was an “impulsive and petty veto” that “was too irrational a move for Republicans will rationalize it. “
Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks, a Republican ally of the president, said he voted to override the veto “due to the high probability that we will get a much worse national security bill within a month,” referring to the approximation of Biden. opening.
Many of Trump’s voters remain loyal to the president, while others share Republican concerns. The split comes at a dangerous political moment for the Republican Party, just a week before two tiebreaker races in Georgia that will determine control of the Senate.
Troop benefits
The defense bill, HR 6395, is considered mandatory legislation because it authorizes not only billions of dollars for weapons systems, but also benefits for US troops. The measure would increase the payment for dangerous duties to $ 275 from $ 250 per month. Senate Armed Forces Chairman Jim Inhofe, a Trump ally who now disagrees with the president, called the defense measure “the most important bill of the year.”
It is a source of bipartisan pride for members of the House and Senate Armed Services committees that the annual defense policy bill has been enacted without fail for the past 59 years.
The president and others on the right have long accused social media platforms of censoring conservatives, something the tech giants deny. While lawmakers from both parties have called for modifying or even removing Section 230, even Trump’s allies said it was the wrong time and place to fight that battle.
The annual defense policy bill would authorize $ 732 billion in discretionary spending for national defense, including $ 69 billion for overseas contingency operations. It also authorizes the financing of 93 F-35 fighter jets built by Lockheed Martin Corp.
The legislation would establish a commission to study and provide recommendations, within three years, on the removal of names, symbols, displays and monuments that honor or commemorate the Confederacy. It would also address diversity in the military ranks by demanding the removal of personal identifiers in promotion and selection pitches, a step backed by Democratic Representatives Jackie Speier of California and Anthony Brown of Maryland.
The defense measure would establish a deterrence initiative in the Pacific aimed at countering China’s influence in the region. Congress plans to authorize $ 2.2 billion for the new effort designed to strengthen the defense posture of the United States and arms and alliances in the region.
Lawmakers targeted Russia with provisions that include additional sanctions on Turkey for purchasing a Russian-made missile defense system, as well as sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany.
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