Senate passes military spending bill, cutting child sex changes, DEI

After passing in the House last week and getting passed through the Senate, the NDAA goes to President Joe Biden's desk for a vote. Although it passed with bipartisan votes, many Democrats were in strong opposition to House Speaker Mike Johnson slipping in provisions to ban military healthcare funds going to sex changes for minors as well as cuts to DEI, the Daily Mail reported.

The package is the most expensive one yet, nearing $900 billion, and is around $10 billion more than the funding that went to the military last year. The military spending vote is usually pretty bipartisan, however, with Johnson's add-ons, some Democrats were obstinately against the military spending. This comes as there has been heightened conflict around the world, both in the Russia-Ukraine war as well as the warring nations and factions in the Middle East.

Syria, Israel, as well as Ukraine, all countries with US involvement, have been involved in the recent increasing conflicts. The package will also allocate funds to take on China's growing military threat in the Indo-Pacific, where the country has engaged with forces from Taiwan and the Philippines. The funding will also go towards salaries of military members as well as tech and weapons development.

On Wednesday, outgoing Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that the military package "Isn't perfect" how he would like it to be, but added that it "includes some very good things that Democrats fought for" with countering China.

The package passed through the Senate in an 85 to 14 vote. Johnson told reporters about the efforts pushed to improve the military, "We improved housing for our military families and other benefits, and it's also why we stopped funds from going to CRT in our military academies."

"We banned TRICARE from prescribing treatments that would ultimately sterilize our kids, and we gutted the DEI bureaucracy," Johnson added.