House approves defense bill after adding liberal sweeteners
By Rebecca Kheel - 07/12/19 01:30 PM EDT
The House in a 220-197 vote on Friday approved the annual defense policy bill, avoiding a potential major embarrassment for Democrats as they kept most of the caucus in line to pass the bill without Republican support.
Just eight Democrats voted against the bill on final passage,.
Friday’s passage comes after Democratic leaders’ ability to hold the line was called into question earlier in the week.
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was the first bill the House debated since the bitter fight over a $4.6 billion border aid bill. Progressives wanted more stringent rules on care for migrants included in the bill, but Democratic leaders decided to bring up a Senate-passed bill without those rules after moderates threw their support behind the bill.
Heading into the NDAA debate, progressives warned they thought the bill’s $733 billion price tag was too high.
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https://thehill.com/policy/defense/452790-house-approves-defense-bill-after-adding-liberal-sweeteners
