US Senate overwhelmingly passes massive defence spending bill
The United States Senate has passed a $777bn defence spending bill, sending the legislation to the desk of President Joe Biden for final approval, Al Jazeera reported.
The evenly-divided Senate approved the legislation – formally known as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – on Wednesday in an 88-11 vote, garnering strong support from both Democrats and Republicans. The House of Representatives passed it by 363-70 last week.
Biden is expected to sign the bill, which authorises $25bn more than the US president requested, but the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Reuters news agency on its passage on Wednesday.
Most of the funds approved in this year’s bill – $740bn – are going to the Pentagon, while another $27bn is for the Department of Energy. The legislation also authorises $9.9bn for defence needs outside the legislation’s traditional jurisdiction, bringing the total to $777bn.