Historic $901,000,000,000 defence bill will force Trump administration to reveal more information on boat strikes
House representatives have voted to pass a record-breaking defence bill that will reveal more information on US airstrikes in the Caribbean.
Some 312 lawmakers voted in favor of The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), while 112 opposed it.
The Trump administration, then, will be forking out a historic $901 billion on military spending for the 2026 fiscal year. That's $8 billion more than Trump initially requested.
The 3,086 page bill eliminates about $1.6 billion in funding for programs focused on diversity, equity, inclusion and climate initiatives - all areas Trump has opposed.
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So, what exactly is this mammoth bill going towards?
Trump is wanting to strengthen US forces against rivals like China and Russia, while also improving troop welfare with almost a 4 percent pay raise and improved base housing.
Mike Rogers, House Armed Services Committee chair, said: “We need a ready, capable and lethal fighting force because the threats to our nation, especially those from China, are more complex and challenging than at any point in the last 40 years."
Lawmakers also pledged $400 million to protect Ukraine against Russia over the next two years.
The Pentagon must also maintain at least 76,000 troops in Europe unless NATO allies agree otherwise.
What will the bill reveal about US vessel strikes?
The new bill also piles pressure onto the Department of Defense to reveal more information about lethal US attacks on alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.
Congress threatens to withhold 25 percent of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s travel budget unless he provides unedited videos and records of the strikes and the orders behind them, as Al Jazeera reports.
Between September and December, at least 86 people have been killed across 22 US strikes since early September.
The Trump administration claimed the strikes were a bid to combat maritime drug trafficking from Latin America to the US.
It was alleged targeted vessels were operated by 'narcoterrorist groups,' including Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua and Colombia’s National Liberation Army.
No evidence has been publicly provided to support these claims.
Trump has maintained that these are anti-narcotics operations, but legal experts widely believe they go against the law.
The Senate has twice rejected resolutions that would have restricted Trump’s authority to continue the strikes, or broader military action against Venezuela.
What happens next?
Now the House of Representatives have passed the bill, it moves on to the Senate, who are expected to also pass the bill, before breaking for the holidays on December 18.
The NDAA will then move onto the White House, where Trump will sign it into law.
Ellie Kemp