President Trump doubled down on his threat to veto the defense authorization bill Tuesday morning as the House and Senate appear poised to move forward with or without him.
In a tweet, the commander-in-chief urged allies in the lower house of Congress to vote against the measure unless it included language repealing Section 230, which provides a legal shield to tech companies for content on their websites.
“I hope House Republicans will vote against the very weak National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which I will VETO. Must include a termination of Section 230 (for National Security purposes),” he wrote, adding that the bill must also preserve national monuments and allow for 5G and troop reductions on foreign lands.
His comments follow a week of making continued ultimatums to Congress to include a repeal of Big Tech’s immunity in the military funding measure, as a matter of national security and election integrity.
Despite the pressure, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle do not appear to be budging on the bill.
In the House, both the ranking Democrat and Republican on the Armed Services Committee are standing publicly behind the bill.
Going even further, Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Ranking Member Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) pledged to reporters Monday that the House would return during the holiday recess if Trump vetoed their bipartisan funding measure.
Smith noted that he had also spoken with Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), the second-highest-ranking GOP lawmaker on the Armed Services panel, and Senate Republicans who all backed the bill.
Among House GOP leadership, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) was outspoken in her opposition to the president’s efforts to veto the measure.
“We ought to pass the NDAA and the president should not veto it. And we should override [a veto],” the No. 3 House Republican told CNN Monday.
House GOP Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), meanwhile, played coy when asked about the potential for a veto, only saying, “We haven’t had that discussion yet.”
On the Democratic side, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) expressed confidence that the body would return if Trump vetoed the bill.
Speaking to CNN, he said, “I would hope so. That would be my expectation. We won’t allow him to pocket-veto.”
In the GOP-led Senate, though, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and members of leadership avoided addressing the veto threat itself, only expressing confidence in the support behind the bill in both houses of Congress.
McConnell mentioned the bill on the Senate floor Monday, bringing it up while discussing the chamber’s agenda for the remainder of the term.
“We also expect to receive and pass a conference report to the annual defense authorization and we need to continue confirming impressive nominees to vacancies in the judiciary and executive branch,” McConnell said.
When asked about the potential for a veto, McConnell allies Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) declined to address it.
“I just think it’s going to be a big vote,” Thune remarked, sidestepping the question.
“When he vetoes it, I’ll tell you,” Cornyn quipped.