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The shots Biden took at Afghanistan followed a bipartisan rebuke of his Pentagon spending plan of $ 715 billion, which a large majority of the panel voted to increase by $ 24 billion to a total of 740 billions of dollars. The move, led by Republicans and moderate Democrats, will make it easier for the defense bill to get a bipartisan vote in the House, but will almost certainly generate real opposition from the Democrats’ left flank.
In July, the Senate Armed Services Committee also approved a $ 25 billion increase in the defense budget by a 25 to 1 margin, indicating that the problem with the president’s own party is hardly confined to the House.
The Tories, however, are still ready to oppose the bill on certain provisions backed by Democrats, including efforts to combat extremism in the ranks and to require women to register for conscription. military.
Afghanistan: The panel considered dozens of amendments from Democrats and Republicans demanding details of the post-withdrawal situation in Afghanistan, including how the administration plans to fight terrorism and extract U.S. citizens and Afghan partners still there.
“What we saw in Afghanistan last month was devastating. The decisions President Biden made… – the injuries inflicted made our work even more important and difficult.
Two amendments from Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) Will require the Pentagon to report to the committee no later than November 1 on why it left Bagram Air Base and why it ended support for the maintenance of the afghan air force. Each was adopted unanimously.
The panel also passed an amendment from Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) Requiring an annual report and semi-annual briefings to Congress that assess capabilities “on the horizon” to conduct counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan, as well as continued efforts to recover US citizens; and contingency plans to continue to evacuate Afghans who hold special immigrant visas and the threat posed by terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS-K.
A similar move from Rogers would require the Pentagon to submit plans to lawmakers outlining how it will help evacuate U.S. citizens, and also conduct counterterrorism missions in parallel with post-withdrawal intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations.
Still, Democrats rejected a harsh GOP reprimand on Biden who allegedly said Congress had “lost confidence” in the commander-in-chief over the pullout.
While most of the proposals focused narrowly on the final months of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Armed Forces Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) Cautioned lawmakers against targeting only the Biden administration and argued that Congress should take a broader look at America’s longest conflict.
“If we are to really take an honest look at Afghanistan, we have to look at the 20 years,” Smith said. “There has been a lot going on in there, and I think just focusing on the past four months would do the men and women who served there a huge disservice.”
To that end, the panel approved a proposal by Representative Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) To form a 12-member bipartisan commission on Afghanistan to examine the entirety of the decades-long conflict and make recommendations on lessons. from the war.
Despite the bipartisan fury over the Biden administration’s handling of the pullout, the panel rejected some of the more politically pointed proposals. Democrats 28-31 rejected an amendment by Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.) Stating that “Congress has lost confidence” in Biden as commander-in-chief amid the pullout.
Pentagon spending increase: The armed services voted 42-17 to increase the bill’s budget by $ 24 billion, a move devised by Rogers and backed by 14 Democrats.
The original budget request was a red line for defense hawks, and the Pentagon’s approval of more spending will likely inspire Republicans to support the bill when it hits House floor.
Rogers’ amendment targets wish lists outlined by military services and commanders who have not cut the administration’s budget. It would pump nearly $ 10 billion into Pentagon coffers to buy more weapons, including billions more for Navy shipbuilding efforts, more planes and additional combat vehicles. It would also boost the Pentagon’s $ 5.2 billion research and development effort.
Fourteen Democrats have joined Rogers’ effort, and many are from districts with a strong defense industry presence or a high number of military residents.
The move is likely to further widen the wedge between centrist Democrats and progressives seeking to cut defense budgets.
Two progressive members of the military, California officials Ro Khanna and Sara Jacobs, opposed the defense bill because the committee approved the additional spending. Others are likely to follow.
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), A progressive who chairs a Pentagon budget-cutting caucus, called the vote to increase the budget “unwarranted and unnecessary.”
“This inflated budget is already significantly higher than what the president asked for, and I will not support it,” Pocan said in a statement. “Increasing the Pentagon’s budget to help pay for second homes for defense contractors is not the way to address America’s most pressing security threats.”
Sketch: Despite a healthy increase in the budget, Conservatives may be unhappy with the Democratic proposals added to the bill, including a new requirement for women to sign up for the bill.
The armed services adopted the measure of Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) To expand the selective service system beyond men only in a bipartisan vote of 35-24.
No Republican voted against the bill in committee, but some lawmakers and conservative groups have fiercely opposed the inclusion of women in a potential military project and may oppose the change legislation.
The effort has also drawn opposition from progressive and anti-war advocates, who argue that selective service should be abolished rather than extended to women.
“Far from advancing fairness, this ruling extends the harms of selective service to women without proper public debate or in Congress,” Mac Hamilton, director of advocacy for Women’s Action for New Directions, said in a statement. “All roles in the US military are open to men and women who choose to pursue them and we continue to oppose any effort to impose military service on men or women.”
The overhaul has already been approved by the Senate Armed Forces Committee. If the provision passes both houses, it is likely to become law in a final compromise defense bill.
Extremism: Conservative Republicans have also criticized the Pentagon’s efforts to enhance diversity and stamp out extremism in the ranks as a “wake-up” effort for the political convictions of police troops.
Despite opposition from the GOP, the armed services pushed the effort forward on Wednesday, approving by 31-28 votes the proposal of Representative Anthony Brown (D-Md.) To establish a Pentagon office to fight extremism. His proposal would also pave the way for troops to be expelled from service if they engage in extremist activity or join radical groups. Yet the definition of what qualifies as extremism would be left to the Secretary of Defense.
Democrats, meanwhile, have pushed back an effort by Hartzler to block funding for Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s anti-extremism task force until the Pentagon chief provides lawmakers with a definition of what qualifies. extremism.
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