That dynamic underscores the disconnect between the sky-high expectations for Democrats and the reality of their ultra-slim majorities in Congress, which have often required them to get buy-in from Republicans in order to approve high-profile legislation.
“There were several real sticks of dynamite that were defused,” said Sen. Roger Wicker , an Armed Services Committee member. “And I’m glad we substantially increased Biden’s defense proposal on a bipartisan basis.” And Rep. Andrew Clyde , a member of the hardline House Freedom Caucus, applauded the GOP negotiators for their efforts to “remove the poison pills that, as a staunch conservative, I could never support.”
While many Democrats, particularly progressives, may have had higher hopes for their majorities shaping national security policy, the reality was much harsher. Democrats’ narrow majorities limited what they could ultimately get in a final defense agreement that could pass both chambers. “It’s a good bill. It's not perfect. Every single person has something in it they don't like and something that didn't get in it that they wished had,” Smith said Tuesday. “And we managed to get a deal together that I think creates an outstanding piece of legislation that upholds our responsibility … as a Congress.”
Yet other Democrats sided with a Republican push to boost Biden’s defense request by $25 billion aimed at matching China’s military gains and outpacing rising inflation. “The majority of our colleagues have recognized that our bill has the support of a bipartisan, filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and a majority in the House,” Gillibrand said. “But the will of those members was ignored in the NDAA, where committee leaders stripped out reforms from the bill behind closed doors, despite assurances that they would follow regular order.”
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