Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will reveal what policies and priorities he will push if elected commander-in-chief of the nation’s armed forces during a midmorning July 18 campaign speech in Colombia, South Carolina.
Right about the same time, the Democrat-led Senate will begin deliberations on the nation’s proposed $886.3 billion Fiscal Year 2024 defense budget.
The Senate version of the defense budget, referred to as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), is unlikely to resemble the NDAA adopted last week by the House with an attached raft of “culture war” amendments.
Those measures include repealing the Department of Defense’s (DOD) abortion travel policy, prohibiting DOD healthcare programs from offering gender transition procedures, adopting a “Parents Bill of Rights” in DOD Education Activity schools, and a host of other proposed add-ons like eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs to the must-pass defense budget that is normally approved in bipartisan accord….