The Senate will vote on President Trump’s imperative veto on the National Defense Authorization Act, the annual mandatory defense policy bill, which sets a final challenge for Congress Republicans to oppose Mr. Trump in the waning days of his presidency.
The Senate will vote to limit the debate on the president’s veto on Friday, with 60 votes needed. The final vote is expected later Friday or Saturday, with the need for a two-thirds vote to overturn the veto. The bill was passed in the Senate with an 84-13 majority of “veto evidence” earlier this month, and the House has already voted to overturn Mr. Trump’s veto.
Trump vetoed the NDAA because of a provision on renaming bases in honor of Confederate officials and because it did not include the revocation of a social media liability shield. Several members of Congress, including some Republicans, argued that repealing section 230 of the Decency Act in communications was not relevant to national security.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has linked a vote on repealing section 230 to a bill that would increase direct payments to Americans from $ 600 to $ 2,000. McConnell has repeatedly expressed opposition to the increase in direct payments, which is backed by Mr. Trump and some Republicans, and so linked it to a section 230 repeal, knowing that adding a controversial pilot would prevent his passage.
Trump has vetoed nine bills during his presidency, but none have been repealed. If he succeeds, it will be the first time one of his vetoes will be revoked. The NDAA is a critical defense bill that has passed every year for decades, so lifting the veto will not necessarily be a controversial vote for Republicans.
Republicans in Congress are still almost at odds with the president, and some refuse to acknowledge the victory of President-elect Joe Biden. Several House Republicans and at least one senator, Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, are expected to challenge election results when Congress is convened to count the Electoral College votes on Jan. 6.
Some Republicans have criticized their colleagues for being willing to undermine the electoral process and challenge a duly elected president.
“Let’s be clear what’s going on here: we have a group of ambitious politicians who think there’s a quick way to take advantage of the president’s populist base without doing any real long-term damage,” Republican Sen. Ben Sasse wrote in a post on Facebook Thursday. “But they are wrong, and this issue is bigger than anyone’s personal ambitions. Adults don’t aim a loaded gun at the heart of legitimate self-government.”