Overnight Defense: House passes $1T spending package with defense funds | Senate set to vote on blocking Saudi arms sales | UN nominee defends climate change record

Happy Wednesday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Rebecca Kheel, and here’s your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.

 

THE TOPLINE: A $1 trillion spending package that includes defense money is through the House, but that’s about as far as it’s going for now.

Democrats on Wednesday muscled through the spending bill that attempts to block several of President Trump’s policies that Democrats find odious, underscoring Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) argument that the House can work as a check on the administration.

Lawmakers passed the spending package in a 226-203 vote that fell largely along party lines. Seven Democrats voted against the measure, as did all Republicans.{mosads}

The seven Democrats who voted against the measure were Reps. Denny Heck (Wash.), Ben McAdams (Utah), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), Collin Peterson (Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich.).

While the legislation is unlikely to become law in its current form, it nonetheless gives Pelosi more leverage in spending talks with Senate Republicans, who have not passed any government funding bills for fiscal 2020.

In addition to defense, the bill includes the other largest government spending bill, Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. It also covers funding bills for foreign operations and energy and water.

Defense specifics: The so-called minibus folded in the $690.2 billion Pentagon spending bill for fiscal 2020.

Several defense amendments also got floor votes.

In a Tuesday night vote, Democrats added in language that would block funds from being used to ban transgender people from serving in the military.

The transgender amendment was approved 243-183. Nine Republicans voted in support of the measure: Reps. Justin Amash (Mich.), Mario Diaz-Balart (Fla.), Tom Emmer (Minn.), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Anthony Gonzalez (Ohio), Trey Hollingsworth (Ind.), Will Hurd (Texas), John Katko (N.Y.) and Tom Reed (Ill.).

One Democrat, Rep. Collin Peterson (Minn.), voted against the amendment.

In another amendment vote of note, lawmakers approved in a 237-191 vote an amendment from Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) to block funding for Trump’s arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Meanwhile, lawmakers rejected 192-236 an amendment from Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) to restore $19.6 million for new low-yield sub-launched nuclear warheads.

An amendment from Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) to boost funding for research and development for a conventional missile system that falls in the range of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty was also rejected, 203-225.

What’s next: The House is now considering another minibus that’s off interest to defense watchers for including military construction funding.

Congressional leaders from both parties and the White House also need to work out a larger budget deal for any spending bill to become law.

They met Wednesday in Pelosi’s office to that end, but failed to reach an agreement.

In a joint statement, Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) seemed to put the blame on the administration.

“If the House and Senate could work their will without interference from the President, we could come to a good agreement much more quickly,” the two leaders said after the meeting.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who attended Wednesday’s meeting, laid out the GOP’s Plan B if no deal is reached. That plan would freeze current spending levels and prevent deep spending cuts from going into effect if no agreement is reached before the end of September.

 

SAUDI VOTES SET FOR THURSDAY: The Senate will vote Thursday to block President Trump’s controversial arms sales to Saudi Arabia, paving the way for a showdown with the White House.

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that the Senate would vote Thursday on resolutions to block Trump’s deal, which consists of 22 sales that would also send weapons to the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.

There will be two standalone votes on resolutions to block sales to Saudi Arabia. Senators will then have a third vote that would condense the remaining 20 resolutions of disapproval into one vote.

The resolutions blocking Trump’s arms sale are expected to be able to pass the Senate, where they only need a simple majority. At least four Republicans are expected to vote with all 47 Democrats to block the arms deal.

House Democrats have also pledged to block the sales, setting the stage for a massive veto showdown with Trump. Neither chamber is expected to have the votes to override the vetoes.

 

NDAA WATCH: The defense policy bill is also chugging along. The Senate on Wednesday took the first procedural vote on its version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

The Senate approved the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed in an 88-11 vote. Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) voted against the motion.

 

UN NOMINEE DEFENDS CLIMATE RECORD: Trump’s pick to be U.S. ambassador to the U.N. appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday.

The big headline came from her comments on climate change.

Kelly Craft said humans have “contributed” to climate change and vowed to press for global action if she’s confirmed — but stressed that she doesn’t think the United States should take on an “outsized burden” in tackling the issue.

Craft, the wife of a coal executive, also pledged to recuse herself from matters involving coal.

“Climate change needs to be addressed, as it poses real risks to our planet. Human behavior has contributed to the changing climate,” Craft said. “Let there be no doubt: I will take this matter seriously, and if confirmed, I will be an advocate for all countries to do their part in addressing climate change.

“This does not mean, in my view, that the United States should imperil American jobs — or our economy as a whole — by assuming an outsized burden on behalf of the rest of the world,” she continued. “However, it does mean that we should promote the creativity and innovation that have made the United States a leader in tackling the challenges of our environment — all while safeguarding our nation’s economic well-being.”

Craft’s comments on climate change sought to manage fallout from a 2017 interview where she said “there are scientists on both sides that are accurate” about whether climate change exists, despite the scientific consensus that it does.

Questions on experience: Before becoming the ambassador to Canada, Craft was best known as a top Republican donor active in Kentucky politics and as the wife of a coal executive with ties to the Trump administration.

As such, Craft’s level of experience was a top concern from Democrats on Wednesday as they questioned whether she will be able to represent the United States at the U.N. at a time of international turmoil, including amid heightened tensions with Iran and North Korea.

“I have deep reservations about your lack of qualifications for such a complex and challenging role,” the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) told Craft. “Historically, U.S. ambassadors to the U.N. have brought significant executive experience, or experience working directly in foreign policy.”

 

ON TAP FOR TOMORROW

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a confirmation hearing for several ambassador nominees at 9:45 a.m. at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, room 419. https://bit.ly/31HJlX7

The House Foreign Affairs Committee will mark up several bill at 10 a.m. at the Rayburn House Office Building, room 2172. https://bit.ly/2Rltf0q

The House Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing on the Pentagon’s deployments to the southern border at 10 a.m. at the Cannon House Office Building, room 310. https://bit.ly/2WQm1mn

A House Foreign Affairs subcommittee will hold a hearing on the State Department budget at 3 p.m. at Rayburn 2172. https://bit.ly/2RnC1Ly

 

ICYMI

— The Hill: Trump envoy to North Korea: ‘Door is wide open’ for talks

— The Hill: Navy explosives expert: Mines used in tanker attack have ‘striking resemblance’ to Iranian weapons

— The Hill: Opinion: Is America headed toward war?

— Bloomberg: Trump weighs new sanctions on Turkey over Russian missiles

— Associated Press: ‘Joints will be separated’: Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, retold