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Senate passes defense bill that will raise troop pay, counter China’s power [Video]

The Senate passed a defense bill Wednesday that authorizes significant pay raises for junior enlisted service members and boost overall military spending to $895 billion while stripping coverage of transgender medical treatments for children of military members.The annual defense authorization bill usually gains strong bipartisan support and has not failed to pass Congress in nearly six decades, but the Pentagon policy measure in recent years has become a battleground for cultural issues. Republicans this year sought to tack on priorities for social conservatives to the legislation, contributing to a months-long negotiation over the bill and a falloff in support from Democrats.Still, all but a handful of Senate Democrats as well as nearly all Republicans voted for the bill’s final passage, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden.The bill “isn’t perfect, but it still includes some very good things that Democrats fought for, said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in a floor speech. It has strong provisions to stand up against the Chinese Communist Party here on a national security basis.In the House, a majority of Democrats voted against the bill last week after House Speaker Mike Johnson insisted on adding the provision to ban the military health system from providing transgender medical care for children. The legislation easily passed by a vote of 281-140.Senate Republican leaders argued that its 1% increase for defense spending was not enough, especially at a time of global unrest and challenges to American dominance. Senate Republicans had argued for a generational boost to defense spending this year, but are planning another push for more defense funding once they control the White House and Congress next year.The annual defense authorization bill directs key Pentagon policy, but it would still need to be backed up with an appropriations package.Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said in a floor speech this week that without the topline increase major bill provisions like a pay raise for enlisted servicemembers will come at the expense of investments in the critical weapons systems and munitions that deter conflict and keep them safe.The legislation provides for a 14.5% pay raise for junior enlisted service members and a 4.5% increase for others. Lawmakers said those were key to improving the quality of life of service members at a time when many military families rely on food banks and other government assistance programs to make ends meet.It includes major quality of life improvements, enhancing things like childcare, housing, medical services, employment support for military spouses and much more, said Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.The legislation also directs resources towards a more confrontational approach to China, including establishing a fund that could be used to send military resources to Taiwan in much the same way that the U.S. has backed Ukraine. It also invests in new military technologies, including artificial intelligence, and bolsters the U.S. production of ammunition.The U.S. has also moved in recent years to ban the military from purchasing Chinese products, and the defense bill extended that with prohibitions on Chinese goods from garlic in military commissaries to drone technology.The Chinese foreign ministry responded to that move last week by calling the bans laughable.I dont think it could ever occur to garlic that it would pose a major threat to the U.S., said Mao Ning, a ministry spokeswoman. From drones to cranes, from refrigerators to garlic, more and more Chinese-made products have been accused by the US of posing national security risks. But has the US shown any reliable evidence or rationale to back up those accusations?But in Congress, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have been mostly united in their stance that China is a rising threat. Instead, it was culture war issues that divided lawmakers on the bill, which took months to negotiate.The Republican-controlled House had passed a version of the bill in June that would have banned the Defense Department’s policy of reimbursing costs for service members who travel to another state for an abortion, ended gender affirming care for transgender troops and weeded out diversity initiatives in the military.Most of those provisions did not make it into the final package, though Republicans are expecting Donald Trump to make sweeping changes to Pentagon policy when he enters office in January.The bill also still prohibits funding for teaching critical race theory in the military and prohibits TRICARE health plans from covering gender dysphoria treatment for children under 18 if that treatment could result in sterilization.For some Democrats, the ban on treatments for transgender children care they said could be life-saving was a red line.In a floor speech, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., said she has always voted for the NDAA, but would not do so this year. She said that the policy change for transgender children would affect between 6,000 and 7,000 families, according to estimates her office has received.The NDAA has embodied the idea that there is more that brings us together than separates us, that our service members and national defense are not to be politicized. That we put our country over a party when the chips are on the table,” she said. Unfortunately, this year that was ignored all to gut the rights of our service members to get the health care they need for their children.

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Small Business Funding

House Republicans pitch short-term budget deal ahead of shutdown [Video]

House Republicans have released their vision of a short-term budget proposal to prevent a government shutdown, with a vote expected just before the deadline.The measure includes $100 billion in emergency aid for hurricane and natural disaster recovery, $10 billion to support struggling farmers and maintains current spending levels for federal agencies.The bill also extends coverage of telehealth appointments for Medicare enrollees and caps the earnings of companies that negotiate drug coverage by insurance.Additionally, it directs the federal government to fund the rebuilding of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore and transfer a plot of land from the National Park Service to the District of Columbia, potentially bringing the NFL’s Washington Commanders from Maryland back to D.C.The bill has drawn rare, bipartisan praise, including Democrats. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the bill was “free of cuts and poison pills” and includes funding for child care, jobs, and countering China.Republicans also expressed general satisfaction with the budget proposal as they look ahead to a new Congress in January with their control of both chambers.Lawmakers have 72 hours to review the bill before a potential vote Friday night. The Senate would also need to pass the bill before sending it to President Joe Biden’s desk, coming very close to the midnight deadline.If passed, the temporary budget would keep the government funded through March 14.

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Small Business Funding

HCs cannot lay down the form in which a bail order should be passed by trial courts: SC [Video]

The Supreme Court has said that while constitutional courts can lay down the principles governing the grant of bail or anticipatory bail, they cannot lay down the form in which a bail order should be passed by trial courts.

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Small Business Funding

Congress unveils new spending bill to prevent shutdown and aid disaster recovery [Video]

Congressional leaders have unveiled a stopgap spending bill that will keep the federal government funded through March 14 and provide more than $100 billion in emergency aid to help states and local communities recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton and other natural disasters.The measure would prevent a partial government shutdown set to begin after midnight Friday. It would kick final decisions on this budget year’s spending levels to a new Republican-led Congress and President-elect Donald Trump. The continuing resolution generally continues current spending levels for agencies.Passage of the measure is one of the final actions that lawmakers will consider this week before adjourning for the holidays and making way for the next Congress. It’s the second short-term funding measure the lawmakers have taken up this fall as they struggled to pass the dozen annual appropriations bills before the new fiscal year began Oct. 1, as they typically do.The bill will provide $100.4 billion in disaster relief, with an additional $10 billion in economic assistance for farmers struggling with low commodity prices and high input costs.We have to be able to help those who are in these dire straits, said House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters.Net farm income is projected to decline 4.1% this year after falling 19.4% the year before from the record highs reached in 2022. Johnson indicated more farm aid could be delivered in the next Congress, saying we can’t do all it right now.Congress is doing the best it can under difficult circumstances, and I think it will be a big boost for the industry, Johnson said.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the agreement was free of cuts and poison pills, and would provide money for Democratic priorities like child care, workforce training and job placement.With this agreement, we are now on our way to avoiding a government shutdown,” Schumer said.Rep. Glenn Thompson, the Republican chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, said he was hoping for more economic relief for farmers, but its a great start.I think its going to send the right signal to the markets that most farmers and ranchers are going to be able to get eligible for the credit they need to borrow in order to plant a crop or raise a herd, Thompson said.President Joe Biden has sought about $114 billion in disaster aid, submitting a $99 billion request in November, telling lawmakers the funding was urgently needed. The administration subsequently updated its request to include funding to repair federal facilities damaged due to natural disasters.The largest share of the money, about $29 billion, will go to the main disaster relief fund at the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The fund helps with debris removal, repairing public infrastructure and providing financial assistance to survivors. About $21 billion goes to help farmers who have experienced crop or livestock losses.Another $8 billion will go to help rebuild and repair highways and bridges in more than 40 states and territories. And some $12 billion would go toward helping communities recover through block grants administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. About $2.2 billion would go to low-interest loans for businesses, nonprofits and homeowners trying to rebuild after a disaster.While this is not the legislation I would have written on my own, it is a strong, bipartisan package that provides the resources communities urgently need to recover, said Sen. Patty Murray, the Democratic chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.Congress is expected to pass the measure just before another shutdown deadline. House Republicans generally give lawmakers 72 hours to review text of the legislation, which would push a vote on final passage to Friday if they follow through on that rule. The Senate is not known for acting speedily, but many lawmakers are anxious to adjourn for the year and make way for the next Congress.Since the bill is the last must-pass legislation of the current Congress, lawmakers have worked to get certain priorities included. On the health care front, the legislation seeks to extend coverage of telehealth appointments for Medicare enrollees and rein in how much money pharmacy benefits managers the companies that negotiate how and what drugs are covered by insurance plans make off those deals.The bill also includes provisions focused on countering China, including expanding on a Biden executive order that seeks to restrict investments into countries that pose a national security threat to the United States. Blocking Chinas high-tech ambitions is one of the few issues that enjoys broad support in Washington from both Republicans and Democrats.There’s also a provision to transfer the land that is the site of the old RFK Stadium from the federal government to the District of Columbia, which could potentially lead to a new stadium for the Washington Commanders.The legislation also provides full federal funding to rebuild Baltimores Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed when struck by a cargo ship that reported losing power just before the crash. Federal taxpayers will be reimbursed through proceeds from insurance payments and litigation.____Associated Press staff writers Stephen Groves and Amanda Seitz contributed to this report.

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Small Business Funding

City budget boosts funds for traffic, police in Birmingham [Video]

The Birmingham City Council has approved revisions to the citys 2025 fiscal budget, including a plan to reduce traffic downtown.>>PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Birmingham’s mayor shows budget amendments to improve streets, sidewalksThe amended budget includes $15 million for street resurfacing throughout the city, bringing the total funding for the project to $30 million.>> YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD: Community coverage from WVTM 13The allocated funds for street resurfacing include $1 million for sidewalks, along with “traffic calming” measures, which consist of ramps and dedicated bike lanes throughout various parts of the city.>> KNOW BEFORE YOU LEAVE: Interactive traffic mapAccording to the city’s fiscal 2025 budget, funding a majority of these measures largely comes from property and business taxes, totaling over $427 millionabout 85% of the city’s $554 million revenue for the fiscal years 2024-25. Another big measure the city started in 2024 is its effort to bolster the Birmingham Police Department following a year of violent crime throughout the city.The Birmingham Police Department alone is expected to receive over $115 million from the city’s fiscal 2025 budget, which includes a measure passed in October that aims to aggressively recruit new officers and retain current ones.The updated budget also includes additional funding for the Birmingham Promise, a 3% cost-of-living adjustment for city employees, and increased longevity pay for eligible city employees.City departments receive over $464 million, about 84% of the city’s budget.Non-departmental and city expenditures equal around $90 million, or about 16%.>> FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube