The annual defense bill is facing a contentious dispute among Republicans in the House. Hard-right lawmakers are rebelling against a bipartisan agreement to remove several deeply partisan provisions that would have restricted abortion access, transgender care, and diversity training. While the disagreement is unlikely to completely derail the $886 billion military policy bill, it has created a political crisis for Speaker Mike Johnson. Johnson has received harsh criticism from ultraconservative Republicans for his handling of government spending measures and now faces backlash over what is typically a widely popular bill.
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia expressed concerns that putting the bill on the floor would anger the base. She criticized Johnson for abandoning conservative policy changes and predicted that he would lose support. The defense bill has been controversial since the summer when House Republicans, under pressure from the far right, included measures to roll back abortion access, transgender healthcare, and diversity training. The bill passed the House largely along party lines, unlike the traditionally bipartisan support for the defense policy bill.
In closed-door talks, House negotiators dropped most of their extreme policy dictates, resulting in a compromise package. However, this compromise has sparked outrage among right-wing Republicans who feel betrayed by the removal of their favored policies. They were further incensed to discover the inclusion of an extension of a warrantless surveillance program that many believe has been misused to spy on Americans.
Speaker Mike Johnson is now preparing for a rebellion from the right, which seems inevitable. The House is expected to take action on the bill later this month, following Senate approval. Johnson, who is aware of the fate of his predecessor, faces challenges in appeasing the demands of the conservative base. While some House Republicans defended Johnson, arguing that the hard-liners’ demands were unrealistic, others expressed disappointment and warned that this could be a building block for further discontent.
Passing an annual military policy bill is a longstanding tradition in Congress, and members from both parties believe that Johnson will be able to maintain that streak. However, there may be another obstacle to passage due to the last-minute addition of a short-term extension of a surveillance law known as Section 702. This addition has drawn criticism from both Republicans and Democrats who believe significant changes are necessary. The defense bill includes an extension of the program to provide more time for lawmakers to address the competing bills, but this extension may inadvertently keep the program alive until 2025.
Conservatives are also upset that the bill does not address certain issues, such as the Pentagon’s policy on abortion and transgender health services for military members and their families. However, the bill does include limited restrictions on diversity initiatives and bans on teaching critical race theory in military academies and schools, as well as requiring Defense Department personnel to identify themselves by their preferred pronouns.
Despite divisions and objections, the defense bill is expected to be debated and passed in both chambers of Congress. However, the inclusion of controversial provisions and the last-minute addition of the surveillance law extension could pose challenges to its ultimate passage.