U.S. House passes $642 bn defense bill despite White House veto threat

PanARMENIAN.Net - The U.S. House has passed a $642 billion defense bill despite a White House veto threat, Fox News reported, citing AP.

The vote Friday, May 18 was 299-120. The bill breaks the deficit-cutting agreement that President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans backed last summer, instead adding $8 billion for the military for next year.

The bill calls for a missile defense site on the East Coast that the military opposes and restricts the ability of the president to reduce the arsenal of nuclear weapons under a 2010 treaty with Russia. It also preserves ships and aircraft that the Pentagon wanted to retire in a cost-cutting move.

Lawmakers also rejected the military's request for another round of domestic base closings. Earlier Friday, the House reaffirmed the indefinite detention of suspected terrorists, even of U.S. citizens captured on American soil.