Culture war fights, China dominate initial defense bill markups

House lawmakers this week introduced major military policy and funding changes they hope to see in defense spending bills later this year, previewing efforts to combat China and to address contentious culture war issues.  

Over the course of seven subcommittee gatherings Tuesday and Wednesday, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) passed an initial round of markups for the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), with plans to finalize the proposal in front of the full panel next week.

While HASC Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) praised the bipartisan work of the seven subcommittees, the months ahead have plenty of political land mines, from a fight over Space Command headquarters to abortion policies in the military.

Rogers said the bill “puts our national security first by boosting innovation, providing for our warfighters and focusing on our defense industrial base.”

Culture war clash

The GOP-controlled House Appropriations Committee in closed session Thursday began to mark up its spending bill for the Pentagon that would fund the policies, weapons and equipment within the NDAA.

That legislation includes about $826 billion for new discretionary defense spending, about $285 million more than Biden’s request.

But Democrats are uniting against the draft bill, calling out a $1.1 billion cut to the salaries of civilian personnel, a $714 million reduction to climate change programs and a roughly $100 million cut to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts.

Other provisions would ban funding for critical race theory, diversity efforts, gender-affirming care and for drag queen events tied to story hours for children on military bases or to support military recruiting.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), ranking member on the Appropriations Committee, blasted the legislation for inserting “partisan riders that have nothing to do with national security.”

Republicans are “seeking to reverse bipartisan policies to have equality for women and to make it uncomfortable for LGBTQ+ Americans to serve in the military,” DeLauro said. 

“Fostering an environment where every American who would willingly put their lives on the line to protect and serve this nation feels they are welcomed and supported should not be controversial,” she said in a statement. “This bill is a nonstarter that fails to meet the agreement signed into law.”

And Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.), the ranking member of the Appropriations defense subcommittee, called it “regrettable that the Republican majority has produced a Defense Appropriations bill that would undermine our military’s readiness and leave us less secure in the world, not more.”

“These riders make it almost impossible to gain bipartisan support,” she said in a statement.

Democrats on the panel are also upset about a provision that would bar the Pentagon from continuing a policy providing paid leave and reimbursing travel costs for service members who travel to get an abortion. That policy has attracted the ire of Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), who is holding up some 200 Pentagon nominees in protest.

Space Command struggle

In another contentious move, House Republicans inserted a provision in the markup to freeze spending to build the U.S. Space Command (Spacecom) headquarters until a final location is announced and justified in a report.

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who oversees Spacecom, would also see his travel budget slashed until a report on the location of the permanent headquarters is given to Congress.

Similarly, the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday added language into its 2024 military construction funding bill that would prevent funds for building out the command’s headquarters until the final Air Force plan.

The Hill previously reported on the inclusion of the language in the appropriations bill. Republicans are concerned that if construction and leases continue in Colorado, Spacecom may never be relocated.

In 2019, the Trump administration revived Spacecom after its 2002 discontinuation, establishing a temporary location at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado with a plan for a permanent location in Alabama’s Huntsville, known as Rocket City.

Since coming into office, President Biden has authorized reviews of Trump’s decision to relocate Spacecom; none of the reviews found anything improper in the decision, though one found the Air Force did not follow best practices.

Alabama Republicans, including Rogers, are frustrated with the delay over relocating Spacecom and grew incensed last month after it was reported the new headquarters might be scrapped entirely due to Alabama’s near-total abortion ban.

An aide for the HASC Republicans said during a Monday background briefing that Rogers is of the mind that Huntsville “won fairly.”

“I think the chairman’s view is, ‘Why should you be using taxpayer dollars to build up all this infrastructure, when the Air Force made a decision that has been reviewed by two different reviewers and found that Huntsville, Alabama, won and won fairly?’” the aide said.

Rogers is also investigating the delayed decision to relocate Spacecom.

Combating China

Lawmakers shaped the bulk of the defense bill around deterring Chinese aggression, including support for a more than $9 billion investment in the Indo-Pacific region, where the U.S. is concerned about China’s growing influence.

But that focus means casting off six older or troubled Navy ships, including the decommissioning of two littoral combat ships.

“You’ll see that throughout our bill — especially with the Pacific Deterrence Initiative — divesting from some of these old legacy platforms that are not survivable in the Indo-Pacific region against a very capable adversary,” the aide told reporters. “We’re really taking a hard look and making some tough choices on things we don’t think we need anymore as we’re confronting a 21st-century military.”

One NDAA provision requires the review and congressional notification of Russia-China cooperation on nuclear development. Additional efforts to counter Beijing include improving shipbuilding capacity, with an aim for the procurement of nine battle force ships, as well as boosting hypersonic missile training and supporting the development of next-generation aircraft.

Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.), the chairman of the Tactical Air and Land Forces subcommittee, said a key part of the bill is retooling the Army to operate more efficiently in the Indo-Pacific.

“The Army needs a new strategy that looks beyond a potential European conflict and focuses instead on fully providing the capabilities required to meet the Indo-Pacific’s challenges of distance and depth,” he said at a Tuesday hearing.

House appropriators also said their bill includes funding to counter China through security cooperation programs with Taiwan and prioritizing delivering weapons to the independent island that China claims as its over sovereign territory.

Aiding Ukraine

For Ukraine, at least $300 million is proposed to support the nation in its fight against Russia, including at least $80 million to be used to supply Kyiv with the Army Tactical Missile System, a long-range artillery weapon.

The billions of dollars in aid for Ukraine that was approved last year is likely run out by the fall. Lawmakers are expected to pass a supplemental package along with the NDAA to support Kyiv.

The Biden administration has so far resisted sending long-range missiles to Ukraine, largely over fears of Kyiv striking into Russian territory. The U.K. last month became the first country to provide Ukraine with long-range artillery in the war against Russia.

And keeping in mind the billions of dollars in weapons the United States has pulled from its own stockpiles to send to Ukraine since Russia first attacked the country in February 2022, the NDAA looks to bolster industry by keeping production lines running smoothly through more multiyear procurements. 

“The Russian invasion of Ukraine really showed [lawmakers] the state of our defense industrial base. Starting last year, members really started to figure out we can’t just turn the dial and create a bunch of Javelins and Stingers and torpedoes quickly,” the aide said.

Other standouts

Also included in the House NDAA bill is a significant 5.2 percent pay raise for service members next year and the establishment of a Space National Guard. 

The bill addresses mental health and suicide prevention, bolsters retention and recruiting efforts for military branches and moves to abolish the Pentagon’s Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation program.

The HASC and its Senate counterpart are expected to send their versions of the NDAA to the full chambers for votes later this summer.

The congressional armed services committees were originally scheduled to take up the NDAA last month, but the debt limit fight caused a delay. Part of the negotiated deal in that battle is a plan to spend $886 billion on defense in 2024.