House Democrats Fight to Strengthen our National Security, House Republicans Abandon Our Allies and Fail to Support Our Servicemembers

After Week of Chaos, Republicans Pass Partisan, Harmful Defense Funding Bill

WASHINGTON — Today, the House passed Republicans’ dangerous 2026 Defense funding bill, that undermines democracy at home and abroad and includes harmful policy riders that divide our nation.

This bill:

• Weakens Ukraine and empowers Russia by eliminating support for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.
• Undermines democracy at home and abroad by allowing disinformation and extremist views to flourish.
• Limits women’s access to abortion by preventing service personnel from traveling to seek reproductive health care
• Harms our military readiness with divisive provisions that undermine morale and fail to support our service personnel, by:
  • Continuing DOGE and the Administration’s cuts to vital civilian positions;
  • Attacking the LGBTQ+ community with hateful policies; and
  • Banning funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

“For the first time in modern history, the Defense Appropriations Act was written without the submission of the President’s budget request – that makes this bill an incomplete product” Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Betty McCollum (D-MN-04) said. “The Subcommittee had little insight into significant Administration priorities, such as Golden Dome, when this bill was written. Golden Dome is a concept of a plan – a vague idea that Congress must better understand if it is to become a realized strategic capability. The bill also contains several poison pill provisions that undermine our military’s readiness, including a policy rider that would make it difficult for service women and families to receive reproductive healthcare. It contains provisions that disenfranchise lesbian, gay, and transgender service members. These provisions will not go unnoticed by our service members, and I fear they will harm recruitment and retention should they become law.”

Congresswoman Betty McCollum’s floor remarks are here.

“Congress has the grave and solemn responsibility to invest the funds necessary to defend our nation and to protect the safety and wellbeing of our men and women in uniform. Rather than working with House Democrats to strengthen our national security and prioritize the issues that matter most to our men and women in uniform, House Republicans are abandoning our allies, undermining democracy at home and abroad, and failing to support our servicemembers,” Appropriations Committee Ranking Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) said. “Despite broad support in Congress for helping Ukraine defend itself against Russia’s brutal invasion, they empower Vladimir Putin by failing to include $300 million for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. The bill continues House Republicans’ attacks on the right of women to seek an abortion, and the rights of minorities to be protected from discrimination. And the bill weakens the Department by continuing the Administration’s reckless and indiscriminate cuts to vital civilian personnel and yielding to DOGE and Elon Musk. Instead of focusing on how to keep the American people safe and improve the quality of life for members of our armed forces, House Republicans’ bill undermines readiness and abandons our allies.”

Congresswoman DeLauro’s floor remarks are here

A summary of the bill can be found here. A fact sheet of the bill is here. 

The text and accompanying report of the legislation, before action on the House Floor, is available here.

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