$283-Billion Defense Bill Passes in House

The House today approved a $283-billion defense bill that slashes $2.4 billion from President Bush’s budget request for the Strategic Defense Initiative and halts production of the B-2 bomber.

By a vote of 256 to 155, the House adopted the military budget despite a presidential veto threat as it pushed to recess for the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana.

In a final plea, Rep. Bill Dickinson of Alabama said Defense Secretary Dick Cheney had just told him that President Bush would veto the bill, citing the drastic cuts in SDI, the B-2 Stealth bomber and troop strength.

Overall, the legislation slashes $24 billion from the President’s request for defense in the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.

The bill reduces overall troop strength by 129,500, eliminates research money for the MX and Midgetman nuclear missiles and saves the popular V-22 Osprey aircraft that Cheney sought to cancel.

It also includes nearly $1 billion to assist the massive U.S. military buildup in the Persian Gulf.

The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Les Aspin (D-Wis.), said the bill “takes the first step toward buying the right defense for a new era.”

But Dickinson, the ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said: “It’s a bad bill. It should be voted down and the President is going to veto it.”

Approval comes as White House and congressional budget bargainers remain deadlocked over how to trim the federal deficit--and what total for defense spending in fiscal 1991 would emerge from that agreement.

The House action also puts it on a collision course with the Senate, which last month adopted a $289-billion defense bill that leaves Bush’s request for the B-2 bomber intact and pares about $1 billion from the SDI budget.

Moments before final passage, the House turned aside an attempt by Dickinson to reverse the deep cut in troop levels that had been approved by the panel. Along a party-line vote, the measure failed, 254 to 156.

The committee had adopted the cut of 129,500 in active duty strength, including 68,500 from the Army ranks. Dickinson wanted to limit the Army cut to 40,000.

Earlier in the day, the House approved, 413 to 10, a nearly $1-billion package to assist the military buildup in the Persian Gulf aimed at stopping Iraqi aggression.

The package, totaling $978 million, includes $185 million in pay and other benefits for military personnel, $250 million for three fast sea-lift ships and $187 million for chemical and biological equipment and training.

The measure also requires Congress to authorize funds received from U.S. allies to defray the cost of the military buildup, which could rise to $15 billion next year.