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Progressive effort to cut defense fails twice in Congress

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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., says social spending would better align with people’s needs and views, and that national security should be redefined in the wake of the global pandemic. (Alex Brandon/AP)WASHINGTON ― Congress went two-for-two swatting down , rejecting a proposal Wednesday from Sen. Bernie Sanders to redirect the money toward domestic needs.The Senate voted 23-77 against an amendment to its version of the $740.5 billion . Progressives floated the plan to use defense dollars (excluding salaries and health care of military personnel) to address the pandemic’s economic fallout.The amendment’s sponsors argued the social spending would better align with people’s needs and views, and that national security should be redefined in the wake of the global pandemic. They said the military budget is loaded with waste and unjustly benefits defense contractors.“Given all the unprecedented crisis the country faces, now is not the time to increase the Pentagon’s bloated $740 billion budget,” said Sanders, I-Vt. “At a time when 30 million Americans are in danger of losing their jobs, now is not the time to be spending more on national defense than we did during the Cold War, the Vietnam War and the Korean War.”RELATEDProgressive Democrats are offering amendments that would cut each chamber’s $740.5 billion defense policy bill by about $74 billion.Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., encouraged senators to vote against the amendment. McConnell accused Democrats of trying to “decimate the defense budget” and chided Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for throwing Sanders his support.“The Democratic leader, who in almost every floor speech tries to accuse this administration of being too soft on America’s adversaries, wants to literally decimate our defense budget to finance a socialist spending spree,” McConnell said. “Defense spending demonstrates our will to defend ourselves and our interests in a dangerous world. Keeping our nation safe is our foremost constitutional duty. We cannot shirk it.”Progressives hoped to spark an internal debate among Democrats, who were evenly split by the Senate vote.SASC’s ranking member, Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said the amendment would jeopardize defense-related jobs and upend the carefully negotiated bipartisan budget agreement from 2018, which set spending levels for defense and domestic spending for two years. He acknowledged Congress needs to address historically neglected communities.“This across-the-board approach, it’s good for a headline, it’s good to make a point, but we’re here to make policy, and I hope we do make policy,” Reed said.Winning 23 Democratic votes was “the most significant step forward in recent years,” to reduce the military’s budget, Sanders said in a statement afterward.“We are going to continue building a political movement which understands that it is far more important to invest in working people, the children, the elderly, and the poor than in spending more on defense than the next 11 nations combined,” he said.RELATEDEighty defense industry executives have written to top congressional leaders to ask for emergency appropriations to reimburse defense contractors’ coronavirus-related costs.On Tuesday, the House rejected a companion bill, 93-324, which is roughly a 3-to-1 margin. Democrats split, 92-139, while 185 Republicans voted “no.”After the House vote, advocates and the measure’s co-sponsors said change was on the horizon.“Ninety-three members of Congress stood together to oppose a bloated $740 billion defense budget,” tweeted Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., who co-chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus. “Though our amendment didn’t pass, progressive power is stronger than ever. We will keep fighting for pro-peace, pro-people budgets until it becomes a reality.”Joe Gould is the senior Pentagon reporter for Defense News, covering the intersection of national security policy, politics and the defense industry. He served previously as Congress reporter.Share:A new agreement formalizes the partnership between both agencies and is a first step toward shifting space traffic management to the Commerce Department.Ukraine's leaders have in recent months advocated for international spending to reinvigorate industries and rebuild its economy, both ravaged by Russia.The Defense Innovation Unit is seeking commercial software to support new supply chain pathways and manage risk across the industrial base.The Air Force this summer cleared the way to start adding EPAWSS to more F-15s, and a new contract for BAE will provide the systems to install.MAPS GEN II ensures troops understand where they are and where they're headed, even in environments where GPS signals are jammed.Featured VideoTrending Now

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., says social spending would better align with people’s needs and views, and that national security should be redefined in the wake of the global pandemic. (Alex Brandon/AP)WASHINGTON ― Congress went two-for-two swatting down , rejecting a proposal Wednesday from Sen. Bernie Sanders to redirect the money toward domestic needs.The Senate voted 23-77 against an amendment to its version of the $740.5 billion . Progressives floated the plan to use defense dollars (excluding salaries and health care of military personnel) to address the pandemic’s economic fallout.The...

Progressive effort to cut defense fails twice in Congress

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