Defense

Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) on Monday again moved to force the House to vote on language aimed at preventing any government spending in violation of the War Powers Resolution.

Sherman introduced an amendment to the Military Construction/Veterans Affairs (VA) appropriations bill, less than two weeks after he forced a similar vote on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill. On June 2, the House narrowly rejected Sherman's language in a 208-213 vote.

The House returns at 2 p.m. from a weeklong recess, and resumes work right away on H.R. 2055, the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.

Members are expected to take up a handful of amendments to that bill Monday afternoon. One amendment is expected to be offered from Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Ohio) that would eliminate language that blocks funds from being used to implement an Obama administration executive order that requires project labor agreements for certain construction projects.

Democrats spoke out earlier this month on the need for this change, and are expected to support LaTourette's amendment.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen has set a Thursday deadline for the administration to comply with the House's demands on Libya.

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has asked President Obama to veto the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) if it contains language that delays the end of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that prohibits gay service members from openly declaring their sexuality.

Frank made the request in a letter to Obama also signed by three other House Democrats. 

"We believe it would therefore be extremely useful for you to make clear that if the final bill presented to you does include these sections, which would undermine the end to discrimination in the military, that you will veto the bill on that ground," the letter states. 

Debate has begun on two competing resolutions about the Libya mission; GOP pushing for Boehner's.

The House Rules Committee on Thursday night approved a rule governing how House members on Friday will debate two resolutions related to Libya.

Under the rule, Republicans and Democrats will have one hour to debate a resolution introduced by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), which criticizes the Obama administration for failing to seek congressional authorization for continued operations in Libya.

Members of the House on Thursday night approved what appears to be one of the few amendments to H.R. 2055, the 2012 appropriations bill for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and related agencies.

The en bloc amendment from Rep. John Culberson (R-Texas) would increase funding for suicide prevention outreach to veterans, reduce wait times for mental health services and increase funding for research into prosthetics. The amendment was quickly approved on a voice vote.

A resolution introduced Thursday by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) directly criticizes the Obama administration for failing to seek congressional authorization for continued operations in Libya, and would require the administration to report on its justification for doing so.

The House Rules Committee will approve a rule for the resolution, H.Res. 292, Thursday evening. A rule will also be approved for a resolution from Rep. Dennis Kucinich (R-Ohio) that would direct the administration to remove all troops from Libya. Votes on both resolutions could take place Friday.

"The President has failed to provide Congress with a compelling rationale based upon United States national security interests for current United States military activities regarding Libya," Boehner's resolution says.

The House on Thursday afternoon narrowly rejected an amendment to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill that would have prevented DHS from using funds in any way that violates the War Powers Act. The language was turned away in a 208-213 vote.

The amendment was supported by 112 Republicans and 96 Democrats, but opposed by 125 Republicans and 88 Democrats.

The House began Wednesday debate on a rule for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with an immediate objection from Democrats, who raised a point of order against the rule because it deems the House GOP FY 2012 budget as approved by Congress.

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) raised the point of order against the rule, but acknowledged the point of order was essentially a chance to debate the inclusion of language on the FY 2012. Ellison and several other Democrats reiterated their argument that the GOP budget would "end Medicare as we know it."