Key facts
- Senate Democrats blocked the $1.15 trillion National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
- The procedural vote failed to gain the 60 votes needed for advancement.
- Democrats protested President Donald Trump's Iran policy and demanded restrictions on his war powers.
- A separate Democratic resolution to remove U.S. forces from Iran also failed.
- Republicans sought to pass the NDAA to authorize defense spending and support military personnel.
Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked the advancement of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a $1.15 trillion Pentagon policy bill, in protest of President Donald Trump's Iran policy and his administration's approach to hostilities with the country. The legislation failed to secure the 60 votes necessary to proceed, with all attending Democrats voting against it in a 50-46 procedural vote. Republicans had pushed for the bill's passage, which typically passes annually with bipartisan support, to authorize defense spending and include pay raises for service members.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stated that Democrats could not support advancing the NDAA while the conflict with Iran continues, criticizing the Republican push to move forward as if ignoring an urgent national security crisis. This action followed the failure of a separate Democratic resolution aimed at removing U.S. forces from Iran, which was defeated 47-53. The Trump administration had opposed this war powers resolution, arguing it would limit the president's flexibility and negotiating position in the region.
President Trump had briefly threatened a tariff on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz but rescinded the idea, though he vowed to continue the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports. Schumer expressed strong disapproval of Trump's handling of the situation, calling it a "recipe for utter disaster" with no clear plan or exit strategy. Republicans, including John Thune, criticized the Democrats' move as politically motivated obstructionism that jeopardizes support for the military.