House Passes $95 Billion Package for Iran Funding, Defense

The House approved a $95 billion budget blueprint on July 22 by a 216-214 vote, clearing a path for additional military spending tied to the Iran conflict while also funding farmers and new voting rules. The measure advances to a Senate where Republican leaders have signaled they may delay action until they can pair it with a stopgap bill to prevent a government shutdown at the end of September. Lawmakers described the funding as necessary for battlefield readiness and troop pay, yet the debate largely avoided direct discussion of the conflict itself.

The blueprint would enable a reconciliation bill that bypasses the filibuster and directs up to $73 billion more to the Pentagon, $12 billion to farmers, and $10 billion to enforce citizenship proof for voter registration, stricter identification requirements, and limits on mail voting. All but two Republicans supported the plan despite internal objections over its cost, its lack of offsetting cuts, and the timing of war funding ahead of midterms. Only Representatives Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Warren Davidson of Ohio voted against it on the Republican side.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune indicated the chamber would hold the House measure rather than act immediately. Senators including Roger Wicker of Mississippi have said the Pentagon needs the full $1.5 trillion requested by the administration, while Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Thom Tillis of North Carolina oppose embedding the voting provisions. Murkowski also questioned whether supplemental funding alone could substitute for explicit congressional authorization of the conflict.

A separate $1.15 trillion National Defense Authorization Act passed the House the same day on a near party-line vote, including a service-member pay raise, expanded missile-defense production, and rules for artificial-intelligence integration across the military. Democrats objected that the bill had been altered to support expanded war spending at the expense of domestic programs. The measure would increase national defense spending by more than $227 billion over the prior year.

Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the overall package an America Last Republican budget. Administration officials have described the supplemental request as an urgent injection required after $37.5 billion already spent on the conflict. The Senate must still reconcile these measures with its own priorities before the end of September.