House passes defense policy bill

The House voted 217-199 to pass the fiscal year 2025 defense authorization bill.

The vast majority of Democrats voted against the bill, though six did support it. Meanwhile, all but three Republicans voted to support the bill.

“Our adversaries will only be deterred through strength and the FY25 NDAA ensures our military will continue to project that strength,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-AL) said in a statement.

Meanwhile, House Democrats said they opposed the bill, which passed out of committee 57-1, on the grounds that new “poison pill” amendments have been added to the legislation that target abortion services, climate change mitigation and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

The House bill is aligned with the $895 billion defense cap mandated by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, though the Senate Armed Services Committee’s newly released version of the bill, which would break the cap by authorizing $923 billion for defense, setting up a significant conference committee issue to be addressed in the coming months.