House Armed Services Committee Chair Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said it is “diabolical” that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) are claiming impeachment proceedings might endanger the National Defense Authorization Act. McConnell and Inhofe had made the remarks on the Senate floor this week.
“There are reasons why our negotiations might break down,” Smith said, according to a Politico report. “[Impeachment]’s got literally nothing to do with it. So, why are they saying it does?”
Negotiations hinge largely on whether to authorize funding for a southern border wall, but Smith said other sticking points include the Space Force and President Trump’s ban on transgender troops.
Smith told reporters that the House will not support Inhofe’s “skinny NDAA” proposal authorizing some of the most mission-critical programs because of the items it excludes, Federal News Network reported.
Air Force photo of Rep. Adam Smith by Tech. Sgt. Jensen Stidham