[ad_1]
The United States Congress overturned Donald Trump’s veto on the defense budget, an unprecedented decision taken by the Senate, a chamber controlled by the Republican Party, which supported the outgoing president in the last presidential elections.
In an extraordinary session on New Year’s Day, the Senate, the upper house of Congress, contradicted the presidential veto against the budget of 740 billion dollars (about 607 billion euros) for Defense, an unprecedented “puncture” and the weeks after the end of Donald Trump’s term, reports the Associated Press (AP).
The bill guarantees a 3% increase in the salaries of US troops and guides defense policy, consolidating decisions on the number of military personnel, new weapons systems and military readiness, human resources policy and other military objectives.
Many programs, including military construction, could only be carried out if the project is approved.
The outgoing president had lashed out at Republican lawmakers in a post on Twitter earlier this week, questioning whether “a weak and tired Republican leadership” would allow a bad defense bill to pass.
Trump called the Senate decision “a shameful act of cowardice and a total submission of weak people to great technology,” adding: “Negotiate a better law or get better leaders now.”
The 81-13 Senate vote followed an earlier vote in the House of Representatives, in which 322 members voted in favor of the defense budget and 87 voted against.
The leader of the Republican majority in the Senate, Senator Mitch McConnell, a man close to Donald Trump, recalled that during the last 59 years the National Defense Act has always been approved and that “one way or another”, Congress would approve the 60’s The bill before the deadline on Sunday
“The project takes care of our brave men and women who volunteer to wear the uniform,” McConnell said, adding that it is also “a great opportunity” to address national security priorities.
“It is our opportunity to make sure we keep up with competitors like Russia and China,” he said.
The Senate vote overriding the veto was postponed after Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders refused to move forward until McConnell allowed a vote on a bill, backed by Trump, to support the pandemic crisis that includes the payment of checks. two thousand dollars to struggling Americans.
McConnell did not allow the vote and used his parliamentary power to limit the vote to the Defense bill, which deflected a threat from Sanders and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer from going ahead with obstructionism, a political maneuver used in the parliamentary context. to hinder or delay the advancement of a law, eternalizing the debate on the subject in question.
Without the agreement between the two parties, voting on the bill could have been postponed until Saturday night.
During his four-year tenure, Trump managed to maintain congressional discipline, limiting any opposition from Republicans to a minimum, but the vote on the Defense Act shows his loss of influence, further underscored by Republicans’ refusal to vote. the project to support the pandemic, already approved by the House of Representatives, but forgotten by the Senate, despite having the approval of the outgoing president.
On January 20, Joe Biden will take office as the next president of the United States.
[ad_2]
