The US House of Representatives yesterday passed a $768 billion dollar defense policy bill which is set to increase the US defense budget by $24 billion, despite resistance from anti-war progressives within President Joe Biden’s own party.
Congress rejected the president’s wish to keep military spending essentially flat in a lopsided 363-70 vote, citing new threats from China and Russia as reasoning for the increase, with initiatives in the spending allocated to counter China and support Ukraine.
The president has previously declared an end of an era defined by ground wars and large troop deployments on the back of the withdrawal from Afghanistan, and pledged to primarily utilize technology and cybersecurity to counter any potential military threats.
The extra funding will also be used for an independent commission to investigate the war in Afghanistan and the conclusion of the conflict, fund the construction of ships and planes, as well as prohibit the Pentagon from sourcing items produced with forced labour in China, specifically citing forced Uyghur labour.