The INSIDER daily digest -- Nov. 1, 2023

This Wednesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Biden administration threatening a veto of House GOP lawmakers' proposed stand-alone bill to aid Israel, the Navy's MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft program and more.

In a statement of administration policy issued this week, the White House threatens a veto of House Republicans' proposed stand-alone bill to aid Israel:

Biden threatens to veto House GOP's bill to aid Israel

President Biden intends to veto the House GOP's standalone bill to aid Israel in the unlikely event Congress passes it because it doesn't include funds for Ukraine and is contingent upon cutting the Internal Revenue Service, according to the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Document: Statement of administration policy on House GOP's supplemental spending bill

Related:

House GOP moves to fund Israeli aid by cutting IRS

House Republicans have put forth a standalone bill that would provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel in its war against Hamas by cutting the Internal Revenue Service, something Democrats have said they will oppose.

The Pentagon's latest Selected Acquisition Report on the Navy's MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft program has information on the service's splitting the effort in two:

Navy to designate two MQ-4C subprograms as it seeks capability improvements

The Navy is splitting its MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft program into two subprograms as it seeks capability upgrades for “Increment 2” systems while slashing overall procurement quantities.

Document: DOD's selected acquisition report on the MQ-4C Triton program

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee this week on the administration's multibillion-dollar supplemental spending request for Ukraine and Israel:

Austin, Blinken spotlight industrial base investments in emergency spending request

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Senate appropriators today that approving the $106 billion national security spending package sought by President Biden would pour significant funding into the U.S. defense industrial base, resulting in not just the support of key allies Ukraine and Israel, but also a surge in American jobs.

Document: Senate hearing on supplemental spending request

Army Brig. Gen. Frank Lozano, who leads the service's Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space, spoke at a recent panel hosted by the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance:

General stresses importance of laser weapons alongside missile deployments

With the U.S. facing China and Russia as adversaries, one Army general last week stressed the need for laser weapons to be deployed alongside the nation's missile defenses.