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The exterior of the U.S. House chamber. Inside, members this week will take up 2014 Pentagon policy legislation. (Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
The full U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to begin debate of the House Armed Services Committee-passed 2014 defense authorization on Wednesday afternoon.
With a long list of amendments expected, the expectation on Capitol Hill is the chamber’s work on the legislation will stretch into Friday. As usual, the floor process will be a long — and sometimes testy — one.
When the lower chamber brings up its national defense authorization act (NDAA), there will be amendments on a range of issues, from nuclear arms to the post-9/11 resolution authorizing military force to M1 tank plans.
A slew of Democratic amendments on potential reductions to the American nuclear arms fleet are expected, according to a laundry list of likely NDAA amendments circulated by John Isaacs of the Council for a Livable World. Also expected are Democratic amendments to further trim the Pentagon’s annual budget.
Two House Appropriations Committee members could to introduce amendments to the authorization bill that were killed by the Appropriations panel during its mark up of a Pentagon spending bill on Wednesday. Those focus on re-writing the post-9/11 resolution authorizing the office of the president to use military force against al-Qaida, and shifting the CIA’s drone program to the military.
A bipartisan amendment is expected calling for the immediate end to the Afghanistan war. Another bipartisan amendment would proposing ending the permanent basing of an Army unit in Germany.
Republicans are expected to get in on the act, too.
GOP members have readied amendments on preserving all warm U.S. ballistic missile silos, and forcing the White House to spell out for Congress any potential agreements it has with Moscow on nuclear weapons or missile defense.
Three Democrats and one Republican are likely to offer an amendment stating “nothing in the bill shall be construed as authorizing the use of force against Iran,” according to Isaac’s summary.
Intercepts readers can track the floor debate here.
