During the three-week debate on the National Defense Authorization Act—which mostly centered on whether to boost the military budget through wartime funding—Senate Democrats vowed to stymie the defense appropriations bill unless the GOP agreed to begin budget negotiations. Today they made good on that threat, approving the NDAA in a bipartisan 71-25 vote but blocking the spending bill from coming to the floor.
The motion to proceed with the appropriations bill failed in a 50-45 vote that needed the support of 60 members to pass. Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) was the only Democrat who voted in favor of the motion, while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) voted against it so that the bill could be reconsidered by the chamber at a later date.
Both the authorization and appropriation bills contain roughly $38 billion shifted from the Defense Department’s base budget to the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) fund, which is not subject to mandatory spending caps. Although the bills technically would keep the military’s budget under limits imposed by the Budget Control Act, Obama administration officials have warned that the president would veto any legislation that increases the defense budget without giving similar boosts to other federal agencies. Most recently, the Office of Management and Budget released a statement of administration policy today reiterating its opposition to the appropriations bill.
During a news conference this morning, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called on Republicans begin budget negotiations next week.
“We Democrats want to sit down with our Republican friends and negotiate a comprehensive funding approach that both sides can support. We’re willing to meet anytime, anyplace,” he said.
The 75 votes in favor of passing the bill exceed the 67–vote threshold needed to override a presidential veto, but Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) said he was not confident Democrats would stand by the bill should a veto occur.
“I don’t know what pressures would be brought to bear on the Democrat members,” he said following the vote.
Over the past several weeks, McCain stressed that repealing sequestration should be addressed in the appropriations, not authorization, process. He repeatedly characterized the NDAA as a “reform bill” that tackles bureaucratic waste in the Pentagon and restructures the acquisition process so that the services play more of a role in—and are held responsible for—the development of major weapons.
“If there is a problem here, it’s not with the authorization. We don’t spend a penny. We authorize the expenditure of money,” he said on the Senate floor before the vote.
With the defense authorization bills cleared in the House and Senate, McCain and House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) will begin conferencing on the legislation shortly. Although the Senate’s version of NDAA makes more drastic changes in the area of acquisition reform than the House bill, the SASC chairman said he was “totally convinced” that a final bill could be ready in early July.
“We are both in agreement that reform is badly needed when we look at these outrageous and disgraceful cost overruns,” he said.
McCain is also pushing forward the confirmation process of the administration’s nominees for top military positions. A confirmation hearing for Marine Commandant Gen. Joseph Dunford, who was tapped to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, could occur after the Fourth of July recess, he said.
“We want to expedite that. All of the military nominees we will expedite,” he said, adding that the timing for civilian nominees would depend on “whether the president vetoes this bill or not.”
Dunford met with lawmakers on the Hill today, but McCain said he did not voice an opinion on the defense budget during their discussions.
“I just asked him to speak truth to power,” he said. “He’s a very outstanding officer. I have the highest regard for him.”