The United States House of Representatives has approved a sweeping defense package that authorizes an unprecedented nine hundred and one billion dollars for military operations in the 2026 fiscal year. The measure cleared the chamber with a broad bipartisan margin, as three hundred and twelve lawmakers supported it and one hundred and twelve voted against. The bill now moves to the Senate, where passage is expected next week before it heads to the White House for President Donald Trump’s signature.
The three thousand-page legislation goes far beyond routine procurement plans. It strengthens Washington’s military posture against strategic rivals such as China and Russia, and introduces reforms aimed at improving daily life for service members, including an almost four percent salary boost and upgrades to housing on bases.
Congress also inserted firm commitments to European security in response to Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. The bill provides four hundred million dollars in assistance for Kyiv in each of the next two years. It also instructs the Pentagon to maintain no fewer than seventy six thousand troops, along with major equipment, in Europe unless NATO partners are formally consulted.
Lawmakers stripped out several programs disliked by Trump, including more than one and a half billion dollars for initiatives linked to diversity, equity, inclusion and climate matters.
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Although the NDAA is normally one of the least contentious annual bills, this cycle unfolded amid rising tension between congressional Republicans and the Trump administration over military oversight. Even so, leaders from both parties encouraged members to prioritize national security above objections to specific clauses.
Embedded in the bill is a pointed challenge to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Legislators are demanding far more disclosure concerning recent lethal strikes against suspected drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. The House threatened to withhold a quarter of Hegseth’s official travel budget unless unedited footage of the operations and the orders that authorized them are released for review.
The strikes have drawn intense scrutiny. At least eighty six people have been killed across twenty two documented incidents since September, and critics argue the actions violate both domestic and international law. Hardline conservatives complained that the NDAA did not significantly scale back US commitments abroad, but Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers insisted that the United States requires a force that is ready, capable and lethal in the face of rising global threats. Democrats, for their part, said the legislation represents progress in reasserting congressional authority over a Pentagon they view as insufficiently accountable.