Despite Authoritarian Warnings, 149 House Democrats Vote to Hand Trump $840 Billion for Military

[Mr. Sparkle]

“If an opposition party votes like this, it’s not in opposition. It may not even be a party.”

Despite months of warnings from party members up and down the caucus that President Donald Trump has been “lawless,” “destructive, and ”authoritarian“ in his wielding of power both domestically and abroad, 149 Democratic members of the US House of Representatives on Thursday night joined with 192 Republicans to pass a sweeping military spending bill—a vote that progressive critics say exposes the fecklessness and hypocrisy of what claims to be an opposition party.

The 341-88 passage of the $828.7 billion fiscal 2026 military spending bill came over the objections of progressives who warned that the bill—now headed to the US Senate for final passage as soon as next week—is a tacit endorsement of the president’s policies, even as he has ordered federal agents to terrorize US cities, deployed US soldiers on domestic soil in the face of lawful protests, threatened to annex Greenland and other nations by force, and conducted overseas military operations—including overt acts of war over the last year against both Iran and Venezuela—without congressional notification, authorization, or oversight.

“If an opposition party votes like this, it’s not in opposition. It may not even be a party,” said Stephen Semler, a senior non-resident fellow at the Center for International Policy, a foreign policy think tank in Washington, DC. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), ranking member of the House Rules Committee who voted naye on the appropriations bill, said ahead of the vote that he looked “at the defense appropriations bill as maybe the last opportunity to prevent this administration from doing something crazy in Greenland or attacking NATO or doing something that we all know is a bad thing to do.”

Earlier on Thursday, the Republican-controlled committee blocked an attempt by Democrats to secure a vote on an amendment to the military spending bill that would have explicitly prohibited the invasion of a NATO ally.

more... https://www.commondreams.org/news/democrats-military-spending-bill

[RandiFan1290]

1. I am shocked!!!

Just kidding!

[The Wizard]

2. The defense lobby will frame everyone

who didn't vote to lard up an already bloated military budget as an anti American soft on the ism of the day.

[LymphocyteLover]

12. who cares about that shit anymore when we're staring into the headlights of this insane fascist state?

[Autumn]

40. They are still going to do that. That's what they do. Been going on for years.

[Baitball Blogger]

3. Has anyone interviewed them to find out why they did it?

60 minutes, this one is for you.

[democrank]

4. I don't care why they did it. They did it.

$ 840,000,000,000….with a B! Trump must be really pleased.

[Baitball Blogger]

5. It would go a long way to primary them if their faulty reasoning is known.

[LymphocyteLover]

22. I think in general there is a ton of pressure to fund the military, because of ancient concerns about strong defense and

national security.

So glad to see a lot of nay votes but it's still depressing to see so many Dems voting yea

[SocialDemocrat61]

6. Any Representative or Senator with a major defense contractor

in their state is going to vote for this. No one wants to be accused of voting to lose jobs going into the midterms.

Like the boy who cried wolf, being outraged by everything quickly becomes being outraged at nothing. No will take it seriously anymore.

[rpannier]

7. 800 Billion dollars

That's an outrageous sum.
Giving it to Trump is irresponsible, incompetent, and idiotic
Trump wants a fleet built and named after him
Anyone who voted for this is an idiot.

[SocialDemocrat61]

13. Probably

but the didn't give their opponent an issue to use against them in the fall.

[rpannier]

18. I heard that argument before

Invasion of Iraq
Didn't work then

[SocialDemocrat61]

20. Not exactly the same thing

[COL Mustard]

14. We've all been outraged for a year now, if not longer.

It’s exhausting and you don’t know what the real outrage should be.

And just think, we have almost three years remaining.

Gods I hope the Democrats take the House and Senate this fall.

[SocialDemocrat61]

17. Yes democrats need to take

the House and even the senate in the fall.

[AllyCat]

30. That is getting more and more difficult when they are showing

They are just going to back up the current dictatorship in hopes they might get re-elected.

I’m so disappointed in my rep on this.

Midterms are looming more and more gloomy to me. I hope someone comes along to primary Pocan.

[SocialDemocrat61]

31. I hope you find someone

or you could run against Pocan yourself. Good luck.

[llmart]

28. Trump wants WWIII

After the speeches at Davos it could be that they're thinking we need as much military as we can get if/when the rest of the world bands together and comes after us.

[SocialDemocrat61]

29. It's about the same as the defense budget

under Biden.

[COL Mustard]

34. Civil War II Is more likely

Turn us against each other, let the billionaires profit from weapons sales and whatever else they can profit from. Scary times.

[llmart]

37. We've already been turning against one another.

He accomplished that during his first term. Plus, there are more of us (and our ranks are getting larger every day) than his supporters, so we'd win that one.

[doc03]

8. Looks like more than just Republicans have no

spine.

[mopinko]

9. sheesh. they cd have at least held it up.

make them sweat a while. not like they shut the doors the next day.

[whathehell]

24. Yes, I know the military is bloated

and they likely didn't need one more cent, but, if nothing else, couldn't they have brought the amount down to show some level of resistance?

[spanone]

10. JFC.

[LymphocyteLover]

11. complete capitulation at this point in time? WTAF. Who voted against it??

Those are the only good Dems left?

[LymphocyteLover]

15. Interesting that 24 Repubs voted against it along with 64 Dems

https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/202645

[LymphocyteLover]

19. Some high profile Repubs voted nay

Boebert, Burchett, Donalds voted nay

Dem firebrands Jasmine Crockett, Al Green, Ted Lieu, Moskovitz, Raskin voted yea.... WTF

AOC, Neguse, Jayapal, Lofgren, Swalwell, Tlaib voted nay

I didn't realize Tlaib was still in office!

[CaptainTruth]

16. WTAF?

[Kid Berwyn]

21. What opposition party?

It’s buy-partisanship at its finest and most sickening.

[LymphocyteLover]

32. this is where both parties are the same, sadly

[LymphocyteLover]

23. I'm curious if more people voted nay than normal, at minimum

[Martin Eden]

25. Didn't Trump say he wanted $1.5 trillion?

In other words, is the bill that just passed fairly normal, considering that it tends to go up somewhat every year?

I'm not saying I ever agree with our bloated military budget; I'm just trying to ascertain whether it's an unusual increase this year.

[SocialDemocrat61]

27. The defense budget under Biden

was around $840 Billion as well.

[Scrivener7]

26. But weeeee can't do anythinggggg! Weeeeee're not in pooooower!!!1!

There's plenty we can do. We just don't do it.

And if they were in the minority, they'd definitely be doing it.

[GiqueCee]

33. The military budget...

... is so bloated that even they admit that they don't know where much of it goes, or how much is gone. They wallow in wretched excess like Scrooge McDuck.

[Walleye]

35. We need leaders who will clearly define our mission. This is not a "messaging" problem.

Democrats in the house are just wrong to vote for this

[Scalded Nun]

36. They live in continuous fear of being labelled at weak on defense of our country

And they act on those fears be being weak on the defense of our democracy.

[Johonny]

38. Given he wanted 1.5 trillion

This seems like am okay pass, and not the insane ask the administration argued for.

[mzmolly]

39. Common Dreams helped usher in people like Trump.

And yet complains that we’re at the mercy of people like Trump.

I think we’re still “punishing” Democrats, right?