The House Appropriations Committee has approved a $1 trillion defense spending bill for fiscal 2027, passing it along strict party lines in a 34-27 vote.
Republicans defeated every single Democrat-offered amendment during an almost eight-hour markup session that Committee Chairman Tom Cole described as “brutal.”
Only two amendments passed during the session, both offered by Rep. Ken Calvert, a California Republican who chairs the defense subcommittee.
One was a bipartisan manager’s package of uncontroversial measures, and the other was a GOP-backed collection of culture war amendments that included renaming the Defence Department.
Republican Andrew Clyde of Georgia sponsored the renaming amendment, arguing the Department of War name “more directly reflects the warrior ethos.”
The name change, which President Donald Trump had already authorised last year, is estimated to cost up to $125 million and is supported by both the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.
Democrats argued the renaming would send the wrong signal internationally about the United States’ appetite for initiating conflicts, while also representing a needless expenditure.
Other Republican amendments that passed block funding for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, gender-affirming care for transgender service members, and a rescinded policy that reimbursed troops who crossed state lines for abortions.
Rejected Democrat amendments had sought to limit troop withdrawals from Europe, block Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to Washington D.C., and force Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth to justify his ongoing decisions.
Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma framed the bill as a generational investment, saying “the choice before us is not between spending and saving; it’s between preparing for the threats of tomorrow or paying a far greater price later.”
Rep. Betty McCollum of Minnesota, the top Democrat on the defence appropriations subpanel, stated: “I will oppose this legislation until we can find a bipartisan consensus on our funding priorities.”
The bill funds tiered pay raises for troops, including a 7% raise for grades E-5 and below, 6% for grades E-6 through O-3, and 5% for grades O-4 and above, which is notably more generous than the Senate Armed Services Committee’s proposed flat 3.6% increase.
The legislation sets total active-duty end strength at 2,112,200 personnel, roughly 40,000 more than in fiscal 2026, which began in October 2025.
The bill allocates $248 billion for weapons procurement, $221 billion for research and development, and $10.6 billion for missiles and air defences, including Patriot and THAAD interceptors.
Funding for the Navy’s F/A-XX fighter would surge from $68 million to $915 million, with the committee urging the Pentagon to pursue the most accelerated development timeline possible.
The committee raised concerns about the Pentagon’s approach to splitting F-35 funding between the base budget and a separate reconciliation bill, warning the strategy was “risky and uncoordinated.”
The bill now sets the stage for a tense partisan battle ahead as both chambers must agree on a final version before it can be signed into law.