First appearance on Fox: A new 16-page House Republican memo has Republicans claiming victories on issues such as diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), border security and green energy in Congress' annual defense policy bill. It shows that.
The 1,800-page bill, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), was released Saturday night and details how the $895.2 billion earmarked for defense and national security will be spent.
” [fiscal year 2025] “The NDAA builds on the gains made in the FY24 NDAA to end the radical woke ideology imposed on service members and restore the military's focus on lethality,” a House Armed Services Committee memo on the bill said. is written on the page.
The document, obtained by Fox News Digital, touts a significant victory that Republican negotiators believe they have won in bipartisan talks.
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Speaker Mike Johnson is expected to vote on the NDAA this week. (Getty Images)
Pushing back on “woke ideology,” this page notes that the NDAA extends the Department of Defense's hiring freeze for DEI-related roles, halting all such hiring until an “examination of the Department of Defense's DEI program” is completed. “We have eradicated DEI bureaucracy,” he said.
The memo also says the Pentagon is prohibited from contracting with advertising companies that “blacklist conservative news sources.”
According to the memo, the NDAA will also cut funding to the Biden administration's Counterextremism Task Force, which focuses on eliminating extremism in the military.
The annual defense policy bill also does not authorize “any climate change program” and prohibits the Department of Defense from issuing climate impact-based guidance for weapons systems.
On border security, a key issue for Republicans, the memo emphasized the NDAA's support for “deploying the National Guard” to support border security at the southwest border.
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The House Armed Services Committee, led by Rep. Mike Rogers, released a new issue memo on the NDAA. (Getty Images)
A key part of the document highlights the improved quality of life for U.S. military personnel secured in the NDAA, which has been the focus of bipartisan debate over the past year. This includes a 14.5% pay increase for enlisted soldiers and expanded access to child care for military personnel, as well as job assistance for military spouses.
Meanwhile, the memo emphasized that the $895 billion in spending directed by the NDAA is only a 1% increase compared to fiscal year 2024 levels.
The memo provides insight into the Republican Party's plans for national security in the new year, when the party will seize all major powers in Washington, D.C., after winning the 2024 election.
The measures highlighted in the memorandum on countering China and Iran are likely to receive broad bipartisan support. The NDAA itself typically passes with a majority of both Republicans and Democrats, with the exception of progressives and conservatives who are traditionally critical of the military industrial base.
But a provision that Republicans touted in the memo — one that would ban funding for transgender treatment for children of military personnel — sparked partisan frustration.
Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said: told Politico He said he wasn't sure if he could support the NDAA.
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“Republicans are exploiting a partisan wedge issue,” he told the outlet.
Chairman Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) praised the limits of progressive policies in the NDAA.
“We remain determined to confront the increasingly hostile threats posed by communist China, Russia and Iran, and this bill will provide our military with the tools it needs to deter our adversaries,” Johnson said in a statement. said.
“This bill includes a radical awakening to the military by restoring its focus on lethality, permanently banning transgender treatment for minors, and combating anti-Semitism.” It includes provisions passed by the House of Representatives to put an end to ideology.”
The bill is expected to be voted on this week.
