The US Senate on Thursday passed a $740.5 billion bill setting Pentagon priorities, but which President Trump has threatened to veto over a provision that removes Confederate names from military bases, reports AFP.
The Senate’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act for critical defense spending passed by a vote of 86 to 14, a veto-proof result that saw several Republicans defy the president and support the base-renaming measure.
The House of Representatives approved its own version of the bill, which also included a provision to rename several US bases named after Confederate generals who fought on the pro-slavery side of the 1861-1865 Civil War.
The House vote was also well beyond the two-thirds necessary to override a presidential veto, setting up a likely clash with the White House.
The two chambers will now negotiate a compromise version of the bill, a process that is expected to take months before it reaches the president’s desk.
A defense authorization bill has cleared Congress every year since 1961.
This year’s Senate version includes a three percent pay raise for troops and a Pacific initiative to deter aggression from China.
