Competing Senate Bills Would Reimburse Guard for Capitol Deployment

July 13, 2021

The two parties in the Senate have competing proposals to reimburse the National Guard for the $521 billion it spent to patrol Capitol Hill from January through May. Army leaders and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin have said the Guard will have to cancel its trainings in August if it doesn’t get reimbursed.

A large House-passed bill that includes the reimbursement and other security measures appears dead in the Senate.

The top Republican on the Appropriations Committee, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), introduced a smaller proposal last week.

“We should pass now what we all agree on: The Capitol Police and National Guard are running out of money, the clock is ticking, and we need to take care of them,” he said, according to The Hill.

A Shelby aide said Republicans prefer to revisit other Capitol security plans down the road.

Appropriations Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) introduced a competing bill Monday. It would fund the Guard repayment and also provide DOD with additional COVID-19 response funds.

“A violent insurrection happened. A pandemic happened. And the President announced the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan,” Leahy said in a statement. “These events created urgent needs that must be met now. A piecemeal approach is no way to govern, and I have been here long enough to know that a promise to do it ‘later’ is no promise at all.”

Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class R.J. Lannom Jr.

July 13, 2021

Recent News

Murray Will Push for More Domestic Spending if Defense Budget Goes Up

Murray Will Push for More Domestic Spending if Defense Budget Goes Up

There’s some bipartisan talk on Capitol Hill of raising the fiscal year 2025 defense budget above the levels agreed to in last year’s spending deal. But the top Democratic appropriator said last week that “stronger investments” are needed in the national security...

Biden Says National Guard Should Not Intervene in Campus Protests

Biden Says National Guard Should Not Intervene in Campus Protests

President Biden told reporters last week that “order must prevail” when protests become violent, as some pro-Palestinian demonstrations have on college campuses across the country, as CBS News reported. “I will always defend free speech,” Biden said Thursday,...

Post-Leadership, McConnell Plans to Push for More Defense Funding

Post-Leadership, McConnell Plans to Push for More Defense Funding

When Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell steps down from his Senate leadership role after the November elections, he’ll have at least two more years in the Senate. Now he’s signaled one of his priorities as a rank-and-file Senator is to increase defense funding,...

In Our Communities

In Our Communities

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed a bill this week to make it easier for military spouses to start work with a license from another state, according to a press release. “Our veterans and military families have dedicated their lives and undergo great sacrifice in...

PAST STORIES