08 December 2020
The House voted 335-78 on Tuesday to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes a must-pass $740 million budget for defense spending.
Why it matters: President Trump has repeatedly threatened to veto the bill this year, demanding that Congress repeal a federal law that protects social media sites from legal liability. The NDAA has passed every year since 1962.
- Trump's opposition also grew after an amendment was added to rename 10 military bases that referenced the Confederacy.
Details: The bill also provides a pay raise for troops and would give paid parental leave for federal employees.
- The Elijah Cummings Federal Employee Anti-Discrimination Act — which would require federal agencies to create equal employment opportunity programs and protect workers from retaliation — is also included.
Our thought bubble, via Axios' Alayna Treene: Trump is still threatening to veto the defense spending bill, but it has strong bipartisan support. Most lawmakers hope that Trump's veto threats are hollow and that he'll cave once both chambers pass the bill with significant Republican support.
- Republican lawmakers also believe they have the votes to override a veto if needed.
What to watch: Although he said he would support the defense spending bill, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday that he would not override a presidential veto — putting him at odds with other top GOP members, including Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo).
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.