Defense authorization bill in limbo while Senate debates judicial nominees
Bill expected to go to Senate floor by July 4.
Four weeks after the Senate Armed Services Committee wrapped up its work on an fiscal 2006 defense authorization bill, the legislation still has not made it onto the Senate calendar.
It appears the earliest it could move would be the week of June 20, but that depends on the Senate completing work on comprehensive energy legislation by then.
The goal, sources said, is to vote on the bill before the July 4 recess.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., Thursday criticized the Senate's lengthy debate on judicial nominees, stating that the defense authorization bill should be a priority.
"The Armed Services Committee reported it out in a bipartisan fashion, and we're going to have to spend a couple of weeks on that bill here," Reid told reporters. "We are way behind the curve, and that's what I think we have to focus on, and we are going to focus on that."
Consideration of the authorization bill likely will take a week or more, with dozens of amendments anticipated. Amendments might include cuts in major weapons systems, like the pricey missile defense program.
Lawmakers affected by the 2005 round of base closures also are expected to use the authorization bill to stall or halt the process. The House passed its defense authorization bill May 25.