Roderick “Kip” Brown
December 28, 2021
Time to Party: TBP Library North Branch to host Noon Year’s Eve Kids Party
December 28, 2021
On Monday, President Joe Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act into law, supersizing the original Pentagon request. The bill comes after both Democrats and Republicans rejected the President’s initial budget request of $715 billion, calling for $740 billion to benefit the Department of Defense. The new defense policy bill will authorize $768.2 billion in military spending, and includes a 2.7% pay raise for service members in 2022.
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) approval of an increase in military spending comes after negotiations between Democrats and Republicans in reference to a plethora of issues, including reforms of the military justice system, and COVID-19 vaccination mandates for members of the military.
In a statement, President Biden said the Defense Act will benefit service members and their family immensely . “The Act provides vital benefits and enhances access to justice for military personnel and their families, and includes critical authorities to support our country’s national defense,”
Congress approved a 50 percent increase for the defense bill, which is $25 billion more than what President Biden requested. Both Democrats and Republicans recently rejected a proposal due to concerns it would undermine U.S. efforts to keep peace militarily with China and Russia.
According to the Associated Press, The new bill passed earlier this month with bipartisan support, with Democrats and Republicans touting wins in the final package.
Democrats applauded provisions in the bill overhauling how the military justice system handles sexual assault and other related crimes, effectively taking prosecutorial jurisdiction over such crimes out of the hands of military commanders.
Republicans, meanwhile, touted success in blocking an effort to add women to the draft, as well as the inclusion of a provision that bars dishonorable discharges for service members who refuse the COVID-19 vaccine.
The bill includes $7.1 billion for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative and a statement of congressional support for the defense of Taiwan, measures intended to counteract China’s influence in the region.
It also includes $300 million for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, a show of support in the face of Russian aggression, as well as $4 billion for the European Defense Initiative.
In his statement, the president also outlined a number of provisions his administration opposes over what he characterized as “constitutional concerns or questions of construction.”
Those planks include provisions that restrict the use of funds to transfer or release individuals detained at the Guantanamo Bay detention center, which the Biden administration is moving to close. Biden’s statement said the provisions “unduly impair” the executive branch’s ability to decide when and where to prosecute detainees and where to send them when they’re released, and could constrain U.S. negotiations with foreign countries over the transfer of detainees in a way that could undermine national security.
The law also has provisions barring goods produced by forced Uyghur labor in China from entering the U.S., and it begins to lay out plans for the new Global War on Terror Memorial, which would be the latest addition to the National Mall.
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
