Daily on Defense: SASC NDAA due today, more bills target gay pride, diversity initiatives, lessons from the deep

BY JAMIE MCINTYRE

IT'S SASC'S TURN: The Senate Armed Services Committee is expected to finish its markup of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act in a closed session this morning. The committee has been deliberating in secret since Wednesday.

A background briefing for reporters has been scheduled for 11 a.m.

In contrast, the House Armed Services Committee passed its version of the annual must-pass legislation Wednesday night after a marathon open session, marked at times by rancorous debate over culture issues, including a fight over the Pentagon's DEI programs.

"I am not supportive of everything in this bill," said Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), the ranking Democrat on the committee, but he applauded the "spirit of compromise" evidenced in the 58-1 final vote. "We have sent a clear, bipartisan message to our allies and partners, global competitors, and the American people: democracy still works and Congress is still able to come together in the spirit of bipartisanship and our shared respect for our armed forces and providing for our national security and national defense."

TWO REPUBLICANS BLOCK EFFORT TO DEFUND DEI IN THE MILITARY

BY THE NUMBERS: The House version of the NDAA comes in right at the $886 billion cap on defense spending mandated by the debt ceiling deal brokered by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and signed into law by President Joe Biden.

Here are the numbers:

Defense Department	$841.5 billion
Energy Department defense programs	$32.3 billion
Other defense-related activities	$0.4 billion
NDAA discretionary topline	$874.2 billion
Defense spending outside HASC jurisdiction	$12.1 billion
Total defense spending	$886.3 billion

WHAT THE NDAA BUYS: According to a summary of the House Armed Services NDAA prepared by committee Democrats, the bill authorizes a wide variety of new planes, ships, and armored vehicles, including:

$32.8 billion in shipbuilding funding for the procurement of ten battle force ships, including two Virginia-class submarines; one Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine; two Arleigh Burke destroyers; two guided missile frigates, and one amphibious transport dock ship
Authorization of the B-21 Raider program.
Procurement of 48 F-35A, 16 F-35B, and 19 F-35C joint strike fighter jets, plus two additional P-8 aircraft
Procurement of 42 AH-64E, 24 H-60M, 10 CH-47F helicopters (4 above the budget request), and 15 CH-53K helicopters

LOOMING SHOWDOWN IN CONFERENCE: With the debt ceiling bill rendering debates over increasing defense spending moot, the biggest difference between the House and Senate versions of the NDAA is likely to be in the area of social issues, including diversity, equity, and inclusion activities, funding of leave and travel for abortions, and restitution for troops who were punished for refusing the COVID vaccine.

Those differences will have to be ironed out in the conference committee. Under terms of the debt ceiling law, the NDAA and the accompanying appropriations measure must be passed by Sept. 30, or a 1% across-the-board spending cut will be triggered.

Yesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved funding levels for the 12 fiscal 2024 spending bills, which Washington Examiner Congressional Reporter Samantha-Jo Roth reported sets up a showdown with the House GOP leaders who want to cut $120 billion from the amount agreed to by McCarthy and Biden.

"I know members on both sides of the aisle, including myself, are concerned about the really challenging top lines in the debt ceiling agreement that we now have to work with," Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-WA) said during the markup session. "This is not an agreement that I would have made, and as I said on the floor, when the Senate considered this legislation, I'm worried about how it will limit our ability to make necessary investments in our country's future."

SENATE APPROPRIATORS SET SPENDING LEVELS FOR 2024, IGNITING BUDGET BATTLE WITH HOUSE

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HAPPENING TODAY: President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meet at the White House with senior officials and CEOs of American and Indian companies to discuss innovation, investment, and manufacturing in a variety of technology sectors, including AI, semiconductors, and space.

In a joint news conference with Modi, Biden said relations between the U.S. and India are "more dynamic than at any time in history."

"Our economic relationship is booming. Trade between our countries is almost doubled over the past decade to more than $191 billion, supporting tens of thousands of good jobs in both India and the United States," said Biden. "Add to that, one million American jobs across 44 states will be supported by the purchase of more than 200 American-made Boeing aircraft that Air India is announcing earlier this year."

Modi, who is not known for taking questions from the press, bristled when one reporter asked about his government's record on free speech and human rights.

"I'm actually really surprised that people say so," Modi said through a translator. "India is a democracy, and as President Biden also mentioned, India and America, both countries, democracy is in our DNA. The democracy is our spirit. Democracy runs in our veins. We live democracy."

BIDEN SAYS HE HAD 'GOOD DISCUSSION' WITH MODI ABOUT INDIAN DEMOCRACY

'THE LEFT'S NEW CIVIC RELIGION': Another shot in the war on LGBTQ+ pride events was fired yesterday when Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) introduced legislation to ban taxpayer-funded travel to gay pride events by members of the U.S. military.

"This is a gross misuse of taxpayer money, as these events have no relation to military training or defense," the senators said in a joint press release. "The DOD's limited budget should only be used to ensure that the U.S. military is the most lethal fighting force in the history of the world, not to celebrate the Left's new civic religion."

In a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the senators wrote: "The priority and focus of all expenditures should be to safeguard U.S. assets and interests, and anything that does not contribute to that mission is a waste of taxpayer funding."

In typical Washington fashion, the bill has a contrived acronym for its name: the "The Banning Overspending On Non-Defense Objectives at Gratuitous Gatherings and Learning Events," or BOONDOGGLE Act.

WOKE = 'WASTEFUL, ODIOUS, AND KOOKY EXERCISES': In a separate bill aimed at revising the State Department's Foreign Affairs Manual, Rubio and Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) introduced a companion version of the "Stop Wasteful, Odious, and Kooky Exercises (WOKE) at State Act," which would remove all references to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) requirements and replace them with language about adherence to "merit system principles."

The legislation is meant to ensure that "U.S. taxpayer dollars meant to advance U.S. national security interests do not support radical social initiatives," the senators said in a statement.

LESSONS FROM THE DEEP: After a frantic five-day search, we now know the tragic fate of the Titan, the submersible operated by OceanGate to take adventurers two miles deep to view the wreckage of the Titanic. The five people on board were killed instantly when the craft suffered what the Coast Guard called a "catastrophic implosion."

As a defense reporter, I have been on several U.S. submarines, most recently in 2016, when I spent the day on the USS Pennsylvania, a ballistic missile submarine. On my very first deployment on a fast attack sub in the 1990s, I was surprised to learn of the depth limits that Navy submarines can go to because of the tremendous pressure. The exact limit is classified, but suffice it to say they can't go thousands of feet down.

The other thing I learned is that there is a limit to how many times a submarine can carry out deep dives before the hull begins to weaken, which is what makes extending the life of submarines a complex and sometimes prohibitively expensive venture.

The OceanGate Titan was specially built to withstand the pressure at the Titanic site and had made many successful dives in the past.

But as David Pogue, a correspondent for CBS Sunday Morning, told CNN, he was stressed about a trip he took on the Titan last year.

"I mean, emotionally, I was terrified. I didn't sleep the night before. But intellectually, all of the boxes were checked. You know, I have had a tour … I saw the redundant air system, the redundant ballast system, the redundant computer system. I saw what a safety culture they have in that outfit. They do checklists, and briefings, and inspections before and after every dive," Pogue said. "And this is the key: at that time, the sub had made 20 uneventful dives to Titanic depths and back. And that's what reassured me. But of course, now, in hindsight, I see that that repeated rise and fall may have been its downside."

MISSING TITANIC SUB: US NAVY MICROPHONES PICKED UP VESSEL'S IMPLOSION DAYS AGO

The Rundown

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Washington Examiner: Senate appropriators set spending levels for 2024, igniting budget battle with House

Washington Examiner: House Republicans go after DEI and 'woke' policies in NDAA debate

Washington Examiner: Two Republicans block effort to defund DEI in the military

Washington Examiner: Russian official accuses Ukraine of attacking bridge between Kherson and Crimea

Washington Examiner: Biden sends China mixed messages but doesn't want US voters to see him as soft

Washington Examiner: Missing Titanic sub: US Navy microphones picked up vessel's implosion days ago

Washington Examiner: Russian court rejects appeal of jailed US journalist Evan Gershkovich

Washington Examiner: Opinion: The Marines remind us that China is coming

Washington Examiner: Opinion: 10 years later, Edward Snowden's failure is in focus

Politico: Biden, Modi Announce Major Deal on Fighter Jet Engines, Drones

CNN: Biden Downplays Impact Of His Comments On Xi As China Warns Of 'Consequences'

Washington Post: Zelensky Says Russia Plans To Sabotage Zaporizhzhia Plant

Defense One: Pratt & Whitney Angered by Lockheed's Support for New F-35 Engine

Defense News: House Defense Bill Pushes US Air Force on Jet Trainer Availability

Military Times: Top Marine Nominee Unlikely To Get Confirmed Before Predecessor Retires

Stars and Stripes: National Guard Struggles to Attract Recruits as Private Sector Offers Tough Competition for Talent

Air & Space Forces Magazine: Kendall: Air Force Recruiting Shortfall Not a 'Crisis'

DefenseScoop: Kendall: Generative AI Tech Like ChatGPT Currently Has Limited Military Utility

Air & Space Forces Magazine: NORAD Boss: Future of Homeland Defense Will Look 'Vastly Different'

Air & Space Forces Magazine: HASC Seeks Greater Missile Warning and Defense Around the Globe

Breaking Defense: Embraer Not Talking to Ukraine About A-29, But Hopes for Other Breakthroughs in Europe

Air & Space Forces Magazine: Farewell 'Big Sexy': Airmen Bid Adieu to Final East Coast KC-10

19fortyfive.com: 'Tank Bombs': Putin Is Turning Old Tanks Into Kamikaze Weapons

19fortyfive.com: Putin Will Scream: Ukraine Could 'Liberate Crimea By End of Summer'

19fortyfive.com: Putin's Ukraine Nuclear War Threats Are Real

19fortyfive.com: Would Putin Start World War III with NATO over Crimea?

The Cipher Brief: Putin and the Million Dollar Question for Intelligence Analysts

The War Zone: Opinion: The Compelling Case for AUKUS Developing a Loyal Wingman Drone

Forbes: Opinion: European Overreach In Tech Regulation Is Becoming A Problem For US National Security

Calendar

FRIDAY | JUNE 23

9:30 a.m. 222 Russell — Senate Armed Services Committee full committee CLOSED markup of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2024 https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings

10:30 a.m. — American Enterprise Institute remarks and a conversation: "The Future of US-China Policy," with Republican 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley; Zack Cooper, senior fellow, AEI; and Robert Doar, president, AEI https://www.aei.org/events/remarks-and-a-conversation-with-amb-nikki-haley

11 a.m. River Entrance — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin welcomes Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto to the Pentagon

MONDAY | JUNE 26

3 p.m. — Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies release of policy paper: "Building U.S. Space Force Counterspace Capabilities: An Imperative for America's Defense," with author Charles Galbreath, senior resident fellow for space studies, Mitchell Institute; Maj. Gen. David Miller, director of operations, U.S. Space Force; Robert Atkin, vice president, special space systems, General Atomics; and moderated by retired Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton https://mitchellaerospacepower.org/event/6-27-policy-paper-release

WEDNESDAY | JUNE 28

12 p.m. — The Cyber Initiatives Group 2023 Summer Summit featuring "top cyber leaders discussing emerging cyber-related national security challenges" https://register.gotowebinar.com/register

THURSDAY | JUNE 29

10:30 a.m. — Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies release of policy paper: "Accelerating 5th-Generation Airpower: Bringing Capability and Capacity to the Merge," with author and retired Lt. Gen. Joseph Guastella, former deputy Air Force chief of staff for operations and senior fellow, Mitchell Institute; Douglas Birkey, executive director, Mitchell Institute; Eric Gunzinger, former F-35 program manager for flight simulation test and evaluation; and retired Air Force Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, former commander, U.S. Air Forces Europe, U.S. Air Forces Africa, and Allied Air Command https://mitchellaerospacepower.org/event/6-29-policy-paper-release]

FRIDAY | JULY 7

7 a.m. Brussels, Belgium — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg holds a news conference to preview the NATO summit in Vilnius https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news