Policy Bill Vote

The House will vote on the fiscal year 2015 defense authorization bill tomorrow, according to a congressional staff member.

Late yesterday evening, the House Rules Committee released a summary of the amendments that would be debated on the floor.

In a statement of administration policy issued this week, the White House threatened to veto the bill:

In the Administration's view, the risk to the Nation will grow significantly should Congress not accept reforms proposed in the FY 2015 Budget. The bill does not include meaningful compensation reforms and other cost saving measures, rejects many of the Department's proposed force structure changes, and restricts DOD's ability to manage its weapon systems and infrastructure. In aggregate, the Committee's changes to the President's proposed defense program would eliminate more than $50 billion in savings over the next five years and force DOD to alter its recommended balance among capability, capacity, and readiness in order to retain unnecessary overhead and force structure. The Committee's changes increase the risk to the Department's ability to implement the President's defense strategy, contributing to a military that will be less capable of responding effectively to future challenges. In addition, the bill's continuation of unwarranted restrictions regarding detainees held at the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, undermines our national security.