Senate clears initial hurdle to passing Defense policy bill around Hawley objection

The Senate on Thursday overcame its first procedural hurdle to passing the annual Defense policy bill despite an objection from Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), putting lawmakers on a path to finalizing the measure in the coming weeks.

Senators voted 82-15 on the motion to proceed to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). 

Usually the motion is passed via voice vote, but Hawley forced a recorded roll call tally after legislation to reauthorize a compensation program for victims of nuclear contamination was nixed from the final package. 

“Congressional leadership has chosen to abandon the people of Missouri and the nation poisoned by their own government,” Hawley said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “I’m not going to make it easy on them.”

Hawley’s decision to slow down the path of finalizing the NDAA will complicate the timing of final passage on the package, which lawmakers had been hoping to finish work on by the end of next week.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.) said he still expects to wrap up the bill next week.

The Senate and House released their compromise version of the NDAA late Wednesday night. The $886 billion package will first move through the Senate before the House takes up the measure potentially before leaving for the holiday season. 

The bill does not include a GOP-backed item that would block the Pentagon’s abortion policy, which prompted Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) to hold up all military promotions until earlier this week. The policy allows service members to be reimbursed for travel expenses to receive abortion care. 

Tuberville relented on the hold Tuesday, allowing more than 400 military members to be promoted after being in limbo for months. 

The House is expected to suspend the rules of the chamber in order to pass the NDAA, which requires two-thirds support of members.