EC Virginia News

Representative Rob Wittman (R-VA 1) has been appointed to the House and Senate conference committee responsible for crafting the 2024 National Defense Reauthorization Act (NDAA), which funds America's military. One of the key issues the committee will address is whether to keep the Senate version of the bill, which includes controversial social spending, or the House version, which removes these provisions.

Wittman's appointment to the conference committee was confirmed by a tweet stating, "Rep. Rob Wittman was named to the NDAA conference committee." The committee will play a crucial role in determining the final version of the NDAA.

As a vocal supporter of the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding for abortions and abortion-related services, Wittman has expressed his opposition to using taxpayer money to fund abortions. In a tweet, he emphasized the moral dilemma and unacceptability of forcing taxpayers to fund abortions. Wittman's stance on the Hyde protections remaining in place aligns with his personal experience as a child of adoption.

The House version of the NDAA, which passed in July, included social spending restrictions. This version authorized $886 billion for national defense programs and featured policy provisions to counter China's influence, promote tech innovation, and enhance military readiness and missile defense capabilities.

One notable amendment in the House version was the Jackson-Roy amendment, which prevents the Department of Defense (DOD) from reimbursing service members for abortion-related expenses, including travel. Rep. Jackson argued that the DOD's policy violated the Hyde Amendment by using federal funds for abortions.

The House version also included provisions to eliminate Pentagon Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs and personnel, restrict military school libraries from obtaining "pornographic and radical gender ideology books," and prohibit the DOD from covering gender reassignment procedures.

Additionally, the House version sought to codify a ban on drag shows on military bases and restrict DOD funding for such performances. Congressman Jim Banks introduced several amendments referred to as "anti-woke amendments." These amendments suspended the Navy's Digital Ambassador Program, which had used drag queen videos for recruitment purposes.

The Navy's Digital Ambassador Program included Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, who performed drag under the name Harpy Daniels. The program aimed to boost recruitment efforts and consisted of five active-duty personnel.

Banks' "anti-woke" amendments also addressed racial quotas in service academy admissions and DOD policies on promotions and assignments. The amendments aimed to eliminate racial discrimination and quotas in military academy admissions and require merit-based decisions for accessions, assignments, selections, and promotions.

Recently, Students for Fair Admissions filed a lawsuit against West Point, challenging the institution's race-based admissions policies. The group previously won affirmative action cases against Harvard and UNC-Chapel Hill.

A report from February 2022 revealed that US service members had spent over 5.8 million man-hours on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion trainings and seminars since President Biden took office. General Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time, stated that the DOD had spent over $1 million on DEI trainings and a program called "Extremism Stand Down."

A survey conducted by the Heritage Foundation found that 68% of active service members had witnessed politicization in the military, and 65% expressed concerns about this development.

With Wittman's appointment to the conference committee, he will have the opportunity to influence the final version of the NDAA and advocate for his positions on controversial social spending. The committee's decision on whether to include or exclude the Senate's provisions will shape the future of military funding and the extent of social spending within it.