President Biden could quickly approve the most important navy spending invoice since World Warfare II, which ramps up spending to counter China and Russia. Individually, the Senate voted down a bipartisan bid by Senators Bernie Sanders, Rand Paul and Mike Lee to halt $650 million in U.S. arms gross sales to Saudi Arabia amid the devastating ongoing conflict in Yemen. “The very last thing we have to do is be throwing more cash on the Pentagon,” says William Hartung, director of the Arms and Safety Undertaking on the Middle for Worldwide Coverage. “This entire concept that China and Russia are navy threats to the US has primarily been manufactured to leap up the navy funds.”
TRANSCRIPT
It is a rush transcript. Copy is probably not in its ultimate kind.
AMY GOODMAN: President Biden could quickly vote to approve the most important navy spending invoice since World Warfare II, with a 5% improve over final 12 months’s navy spending invoice. The $768 billion navy funds is $24 billion increased than what Biden requested regardless of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The bundle contains funds aimed toward countering China’s energy and to construct Ukraine’s navy energy. It additionally contains practically $28 billion in nuclear weapons funding.
The invoice is headed to the Senate, then to President Biden, after the Home accredited the invoice late Tuesday night time with extra Republicans than Democrats voting for it. Amongst those that voted no was progressive New York Congressmember Jamaal Bowman, who tweeted, quote, “It’s astounding how shortly Congress strikes weapons however we are able to’t guarantee housing, care, and justice for our veterans, nor put money into strong jobs packages for districts like mine.” Bowman additionally criticized how the compromise invoice strips funding that will have established an workplace for countering extremism within the Pentagon, saying the invoice, quote, “should additionally shield the Black women and men who’re disproportionately the goal of extremism and a biased navy justice system,” unquote.
Additionally absent from the invoice is a provision to require girls to register for the draft.
Individually, the Senate voted down a bipartisan bid by Senators Bernie Sanders, Rand Paul and Mike Lee to halt $650 million in U.S. arms gross sales to Saudi Arabia amidst the devastating ongoing conflict on Yemen.
For extra, we’re joined by Invoice Hartung, director of Arms and Safety Undertaking on the Middle for Worldwide Coverage, creator of a brand new report, “Arming Repression: U.S. Navy Help for Saudi Arabia, from Trump to Biden,” his newest e-book, Prophets of Warfare: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Navy-Industrial Complicated.
Invoice Hartung, welcome again to Democracy Now! To begin with, when you can simply reply to the Home passage of the most important weapons spending invoice in U.S. historical past since World Warfare II?
WILLIAM HARTUNG: Properly, I feel it’s an outrage, when you take a look at what we actually want. , within the roundup, you talked about the necessity to spend on pandemic preparedness. The world is on fireplace with the impacts of local weather change. We’ve obtained deep issues of racial and financial injustice on this nation. We’ve obtained an rebellion and violence making an attempt to undermine our democracy. So the very last thing we have to do is be throwing more cash on the Pentagon. And it’s an enormous quantity. It’s greater than we spent in Vietnam, the Korean Warfare, the Reagan buildup of the ’80s, all all through the Chilly Warfare. And as you stated, even on the time as Biden has pulled out U.S. troops from Afghanistan, the Pentagon funds retains going up and up.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: And, Invoice Hartung, may reply particularly to the truth that the funds is $24 billion greater than what was requested? Is it frequent to have such an enormous distinction by way of the quantity requested and the quantity granted, $24 billion?
WILLIAM HARTUNG: Properly, Congress usually provides cash for pet initiatives — Boeing plane in Missouri, assault submarines in Connecticut and Virginia — however nothing at this degree. , $24 billion is the largest congressional add-on that I can consider in latest reminiscence. So it’s type of extraordinary, particularly, as we stated, when the infinite wars ought to be winding down.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: And may you discuss a few of the key figures in Congress who’ve been pushing for a rise?
WILLIAM HARTUNG: Properly, you’ve obtained individuals like James Inhofe, who’s the Republican lead on the Senate Armed Companies Committee, who’s principally stated we have to spend 3 to five% extra per 12 months in perpetuity, which might push the funds over a trillion {dollars} inside 5 to 6 years. He’s all the time touting a report known as the Nationwide Protection Technique Fee report, which was put collectively primarily by individuals who had been from the arms trade, from suppose tanks funded by the arms trade. Mainly, it was a type of a particular curiosity assortment that had been pushing this.
After which you’ve gotten Mike Rogers from Alabama, who’s the important thing participant on Home Armed Companies. He’s obtained Huntsville in his state, and Huntsville is kind of the missile capital of America — Military missiles, missile protection methods. He additionally will get tons of of 1000’s of {dollars} from the weapons trade for his reelection. So, there’s a robust type of pork barrel particular curiosity push by the military-industrial advanced that assist result in this end result.
AMY GOODMAN: The Senate voted down a bipartisan bid by Senators Bernie Sanders, Rand Paul and Mike Lee to halt the $650 million in U.S. arms gross sales to Saudi Arabia, this amidst the devastating ongoing conflict on Yemen. I wish to play a clip of Senators Paul and Sanders addressing the Senate Tuesday.
SEN. RAND PAUL: The U.S. ought to finish all arms gross sales to the Saudis till they finish their blockade of Yemen. President Biden stated he would change the Trump coverage of supporting Saudi’s conflict in Yemen, however it’s not all that obvious that coverage has modified. … We fee these weapons, and we must always not give them to international locations who’re ravenous youngsters and are committing, basically, genocide in Yemen.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: President, I discover myself within the considerably uncomfortable and weird place of agreeing with Senator Paul.
AMY GOODMAN: So, that was Senator Sanders and Paul. Invoice Hartung, you’re the creator of the brand new report headlined “Arming Repression: U.S. Navy Help for Saudi Arabia, from Trump to Biden.” Are you able to speak concerning the significance of this, what was voted down?
WILLIAM HARTUNG: Properly, these missiles are air-to-air missiles, which can be utilized to implement the air blockade that’s been put over Yemen. So, the Saudis have bombed the Sana’a airport runways. They’ve tried to maintain ships from coming in with gas. And in consequence, prices of medical provides now are out of the attain of the typical individual of Yemen. Individuals haven’t been capable of go away the nation for medical therapy. Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE say 32,000 individuals have most likely died only for lack of having the ability to go away the nation for that specialised care. 4 hundred thousand youngsters are in danger, in accordance with the World Meals Programme, of hunger due to the blockade. Tens of millions of Yemenis want humanitarian help simply to outlive, and the Saudi blockade is making it more and more tough to get that help or to get business items that they want.
So, principally, it is a legal enterprise run by Mohammed bin Salman. And Joe Biden stated, when he was a candidate, Saudi Arabia, we’d deal with it like an pariah; he wouldn’t arm them. In his first overseas coverage speech, he stated the U.S. ought to cease help for offensive operations in Yemen. And but he’s accredited a contract for upkeep of Saudi planes and assault helicopters, and now this deal for the missiles. So he’s principally gone again on his pledge to forge a brand new relationship with Saudi Arabia and to make use of U.S. leverage to finish the blockade and the conflict itself.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: Invoice, earlier than we conclude, simply to return to the navy funds, may you remark particularly on the $28 billion earmarked for nuclear weapons?
WILLIAM HARTUNG: Properly, sadly, this invoice doubles down on the Pentagon’s buildup of a brand new technology of nuclear weapons, a brand new technology of nuclear warheads, which is, after all, the very last thing we’d like at a time of worldwide tensions. , specifically, there was even a provision that stated it’s not allowed to scale back the variety of intercontinental ballistic missiles, that are essentially the most harmful weapons on the planet as a result of they may simply be utilized by accident if there have been a false alarm of assault, as a result of the president has solely minutes to resolve whether or not to make use of these items. So, I feel that’s one of many largest stains on this invoice, is principally persevering with to stoke the nuclear arms race, not solely at nice value however at nice threat to the way forward for the planet.
AMY GOODMAN: And at last, the China and Russia getting used as justification for weapons gross sales and elevated navy funds, are you able to examine the U.S. navy funds to theirs?
WILLIAM HARTUNG: Properly, the U.S. spends about 10 occasions what Russia spends, about 3 times what China spends. It has 13 occasions as many energetic nuclear warheads in its stockpile as China does. We’ve obtained 11 plane carriers of a sort that China doesn’t have. We’ve obtained 800 U.S. navy bases across the globe, whereas China has three. So this entire concept that China and Russia are navy threats to the US has primarily been manufactured to leap up the navy funds. And up to now, sadly, at the very least within the halls of Congress and the Biden administration, that’s been profitable.
AMY GOODMAN: Invoice Hartung, we wish to thanks for being with us, director of the Arms and Safety Undertaking on the Middle for Worldwide Coverage. We’ll hyperlink to your new report, “Arming Repression: U.S. Navy Help for Saudi Arabia, from Trump to Biden.” Hartung’s newest e-book, Prophets of Warfare: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Navy-Industrial Complicated.
Subsequent up, calls are rising for President Biden to increase the moratorium on scholar debt funds as thousands and thousands face a debt disaster in the course of the pandemic. We’ll communicate with the Debt Collective’s Astra Taylor about her new animated movie, Your Debt Is Somebody Else’s Asset. Stick with us.
