Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today voted no on the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act, a massive bill that would have greenlit Trump’s endless war in Iran, devoted billions in unchecked military spending and included a host of provisions that would threaten Americans’ privacy and security. The bill failed to advance on a procedural vote.
“I cannot support an outrageous $1.15 trillion in military spending while Donald Trump engages in an idiotic war with Iran that is doing nothing to make Americans safer, puts U.S. servicemembers and civilians in harm’s way, and spikes the price of gas,” Wyden said.
“This bill does nothing to address Secretary Hegseth’s politicization of our military, curb wasteful spending, or ensure robust oversight of shady defense contractors like Palantir and Elon Musk’s xAI.“
“I also cannot support new authorities included in the bill which seek to deepen and accelerate cooperation with Israeli contractors on surveillance and AI technologies that are ripe for abuse. On Netanyahu’s watch, surveillance technologies developed by Israeli companies have repeatedly been used by repressive regimes, contributed to human rights violations in Gaza, and have been used against Americans. The Netanyahu government’s actions in Gaza and West Bank make clear that the current Israeli government’s actions are not aligned with U.S. interests and the safety of civilians.”
A web version of this release is available here.
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