House votes to adopt Department of War renaming as part of annual defense bill

By — Kevin Freking, Associated Press Kevin Freking, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/house-votes-to-adopt-department-of-war-renaming-as-part-of-annual-defense-bill Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter House votes to adopt Department of War renaming as part of annual defense bill Politics Jul 22, 2026 7:45 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The House on Wednesday passed a defense policy bill that incorporates President Donald Trump's request for a historic $1.15 trillion in spending for national security and that would designate the Department of Defense as the Department of War. It also would provide for a pay raise next year ranging from 5% to 7% for service members, depending upon their rank. READ MORE: Senators grilled Hegseth on Iran. Here are 3 big moments from the hearing The National Defense Authorization Act is generally one of the more bipartisan bills that Congress takes up on an annual basis. That's not the case this year. The vote was 216-212. Democrats took issue with steep spending increases for the Pentagon as Republicans attempted to cut numerous non-defense programs through other bills. They also opposed some of the conservative social policy riders that were included. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. For example, the bill includes a prohibition on gender-related medical care under the military health program known as TRICARE. It also eases hurdles for service members to carry a privately owned firearm on base, following Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's lead on the issue. Republican leaders' decision to attach Trump's elections overhaul bill to the defense bill upon its passing also amplified the partisan divide. Speaker Mike Johnson is working to accommodate Republican lawmakers who are angry that the Senate won't pass the SAVE America Act and are insisting that it be included in must-pass bills until the Senate relents. The House bill is testing a normally bipartisan process Rep. Mike Rogers, the Republican chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, emphasized that he knows there were areas of disagreement, but he emphasized that Wednesday's vote was a step in a long process. He promised to work in a bipartisan manner on a final product that can pass both chambers and be signed into law. Rogers said the United States needs to reverse decades of underinvestment and neglect in the nation's armed forces and defense industrial base. "This bill will do that and much more," he said. "It will build the ready, capable and lethal fighting force we need to deter China and other adversaries." Rep. Adam Smith, the ranking Democratic lawmaker on the Armed Services Committee, said the defense spending the administration has asked for this year is approaching $1.6 trillion when including separate efforts to pay for the war in Iran and boost weapons stockpiles. "Th