U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik speaks with the Enterprise editorial board Oct. 5, 2018, at the newspaper’s Saranac Lake office. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

WASHINGTON — Northern New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik ultimately voted against House Democrats’ National Defense Authorization Act for the 2020 fiscal year on Friday, although she had previously voted for a different version it in committee.

She released the following statement explaining her thoughts and actions on the annual military spending bill:

“I am disappointed that Democrats have chosen to make the NDAA a partisan bill. The principal role of Congress in national security is to protect our homeland and provide our men and women in uniform with the resources they need to execute their mission on our behalf. In my district, I am proud to be a leader and fierce advocate for Fort Drum by ensuring it is recognized as a fully capable defense post, and ensuring it has the funding it needs to operate and accomplish its critical mission.

“I was one of two Republicans to cross the aisle and vote for the NDAA in committee in hopes that we could improve it through the amendment process. Today, I voted for the bipartisan amendment to the bill that would have given our military a 4% pay raise, and would have increased the topline defense number. Unfortunately, House Democrats blocked that effort. With the Democrats’ partisan provisions that were added on the Floor, I could not in good conscience vote for this legislation. Our military readiness has already suffered devastating blows from sequestration, and this would worsen the problem. Additionally, this bill reduces the requested topline defense funding number by over $16 billion, hinders the modernization of our nuclear triad, limits the president’s constitutional authority as commander-in-chief to respond to military threats, does not allow the president to deploy troops to the border to enforce our immigration laws, and did not allow the House to debate the Democrats’ efforts to close Guantanamo Bay and bring terrorists to the United States. While I support portions of this bill, I am deeply concerned it fails to fulfill our role as a legislative body and does not reflect a longstanding tradition of robust bipartisan support. I anticipate this bill will improve as we work with the Senate in conference, and am hopeful that a truly bipartisan NDAA will be the result.”

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House Democrats lead push to restrict Trump on Iran strikes

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By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press

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WASHINGTON — The Democratic-controlled House voted Friday to put a liberalized stamp on Pentagon policy, including a bipartisan proposal to limit President Donald Trump’s authority to make war against Iran.

The measure passed along party lines after a series of votes that pushed it further to the left. Among them was a 251-170 tally to require Trump get authorization from Congress to conduct military strikes against Iran, along with a repeal of a 2002 law authorizing the war in Iraq.

More than two dozen Republicans joined with Democrats on the Iran vote. Trump last month came within minutes of launching a missile strike against Iran in retaliation for Iran’s downing of a U.S. drone.

The broader measure passed by a 220-197 vote after several other provisions were tacked on by the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, which had been upset by leadership’s handling of a border bill last month.

“On the floor, the bill has taken a radical left turn,” said Texas Rep. Mac Thornberry, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee. “There’s good and bad in this bill … but it’s moving in a direction that does make America less safe.”

The Trump administration has promised to veto the House measure. The Senate passed its own bill last month. Lawmakers will try to reconcile the competing versions in what could be lengthy negotiations given the differences.

The House measure, which cuts Trump’s request for the military by $17 billion, is still too rich for some progressives. They also balk at its continued funding of overseas military operations.

But the measure includes Democratic priorities such as a ban on transferring new detainees to the Guantanamo Bay prison and a denial of Trump’s request for $88 million to build a new prison at the base. It removes a ban against transferring detainees from Guantanamo Bay to the United States that was enacted when Democrats controlled Congress in the early years of the Obama administration.

Republicans are less critical about the measure’s overall cost than with its contents, especially in military readiness accounts.

It would ban the deployment of a new submarine-launched low-yield nuclear missile and block the administration from shifting military money to a U.S.-Mexico border wall.

“It’s a bill that I think Democrats should be happy with,” said the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash. “It’s not everything they want but we need to pass it to say, ‘This is our position,’ to move the ball in the direction we want.”

Other provisions are broadly popular, including a 3.1% pay raise for military service members and authorization to procure new weapons systems, and expanded health and child benefits for military families.

Another provision would deliver 12 weeks of paid family leave to all federal workers.