Trump backs down on Hormuz fee, vows to continue blockade
Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked the advancement of the National Defense Authorization Act, a must-pass defense spending bill, in protest of President Donald Trump’s ongoing military operations in Iran. All Democrats present voted against the procedural measure, denying it the 60 votes required to advance under Senate rules.
The blockade comes amid what The Guardian reported as the fiercest exchange of fire between the United States and Iran in weeks. The Senate last month passed a war powers resolution intended to force a ceasefire, but the conflict has continued.
Chuck Schumer, the Senate’s top Democrat, said his party could not support bringing the defense bill to the floor while active fighting persists. “Republicans want the Senate to take up the NDAA, the defense bill, as though none of this is happening – as though Congress can debate the nation’s central national security bill while ignoring the nation’s most urgent national security crisis,” Schumer said. “We cannot.”
President Trump earlier in the week had threatened to impose a 20% “security” fee on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz. During a White House meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on Tuesday, Trump backed down from that proposal, according to reports, but said he would continue the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports. Schumer responded: “Trump has no clue what he’s doing in Iran, and it’s a recipe for utter disaster. He had no plan and no exit strategy on day one of this reckless war. We’re on day 136, and nothing has changed.”
Republicans criticized the Democratic blockade. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said ahead of the vote that Democrats have “allowed the politics of obstruction to determine so many of their actions for the last year and a half.” Thune said he hoped Democrats would not “put politics ahead of support for our men and women in uniform.”
The NDAA would authorize $1.15tn in defense spending for the upcoming fiscal year, in line with Trump’s proposed budget. The bill includes pay increases for service members and funding for new unmanned weapons and counter-drone technology that military leaders have said will be necessary for future conflicts with rivals.