40 Senate
Democrats Join GOP to Send $717 Billion Military Spending Bill to Trump's Desk
commondreams.org
Thursday,
August 02, 2018
"Not
one op-ed or editorial or talking head on cable news will ask 'how will we pay
for it?' Funding for bombs, guns, military bases, warships, fighter jets is
simply factored in. Like gravity or entropy, it just is."
As
the Washington Post's Jeff Stein noted on Twitter, the legislation
will hit Trump's desk at a time when "military spending, adjusted for
inflation, is higher than at any point outside the Iraq War." (Photo: U.S.
Air Force/Madelyn Brown)
In a
late afternoon vote that garnered very little attention in the corporate
media—and predictably didn't spark any of the handwringing about costs that
pundits typically apply to social programs for the poor and working class—40
Democrats and Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) joined nearly every Senate Republican
on Wednesday to send a $717 billion military spending bill to President Donald
Trump's desk.
"Not
one op-ed or editorial or talking head on cable news will ask 'how will we pay
for it?'"
—Adam Johnson
—Adam Johnson
The
legislation—formally titled the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization
Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2019—is now "on track to become law before the
start of the fiscal year for the first time since the fiscal 1997
bill," The Hill reported. Trump is expected to sign the
measure before the end of the week.
The
final Senate vote tally was 87-10 (view the full roll call below).
As
the Washington Post's Jeff Stein noted on Twitter, the legislation
will hit Trump's desk at a time when "military spending, adjusted for
inflation, is higher than at any point outside the Iraq War."
Among
notable Democratic yes votes:
-- Tom Carper (DE), who faces @KerriHarrisDE in a primary;
-- Minority Leader Schumer
-- Possible 2020 hopefuls Sherrod Brown (OH), Cory Booker (NJ)
Military spending, adjusted for inflation, is higher than at any point outside the Iraq War:
-- Tom Carper (DE), who faces @KerriHarrisDE in a primary;
-- Minority Leader Schumer
-- Possible 2020 hopefuls Sherrod Brown (OH), Cory Booker (NJ)
Military spending, adjusted for inflation, is higher than at any point outside the Iraq War:
"Not
one op-ed or editorial or talking head on cable news will ask 'how will we pay
for it?'" media analyst Adam Johnson noted following the Senate's vote.
"Funding for bombs, guns, military bases, warships, fighter jets is simply
factored in. Like gravity or entropy, it just is."
Overall,
the 2019 NDAA will hike military spending by $82 billion. The Intercept's
Alex Emmons has noted that with $80 billion a year, you
could make public colleges and universities in the U.S. tuition-free."
Here
are the ten senators who voted against the spending measure: Bernie Sanders
(I-Vt.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand
(D-N.Y.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Jeff Merkley
(D-Ore.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Mike Lee (R-Utah.), and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).
In
addition to Sen. Angus King, who caucuses with the Democrats, here are the 40
Democrats who voted to send the NDAA to Trump's desk:
|
Tammy
Baldwin (Wis.)
Michael Bennet (Colo.) Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) Cory Booker (N.J.) Sherrod Brown (Ohio) Maria Cantwell (Wash.) Ben Cardin (Md.) Tom Carper (Del.) Bob Casey (Penn.) Chris Coons (Del.) Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.) Joe Donnelly (Ind.) Tammy Duckworth (Ill.) Dianne Feinstein (Calif.) |
Maggie
Hassan (N.H.)
Martin Heinrich (N.M.) Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.) Mazie Hirono (Hawaii) Doug Jones (Ala.) Tim Kaine (Va.) Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) Patrick Leahy (Vt.) Joe Manchin (W.Va.) Claire McCaskill (Mo.) Bob Menendez (N.J.) Chris Murphy (Conn.) Patty Murray (Wash.) |
Bill
Nelson (Fla.)
Gary Peters (Mich.) Jack Reed (R.I.) Brian Schatz (Hawaii) Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.) Tina Smith (Minn.) Debbie Stabenow (Mich.) Jon Tester (Montana) Tom Udall (N.M.) Chris Van Hollen (Md.) Mark Warner (Va.) Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.) |
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has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their
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