New Dems Help Pass NDAA, Encourage Bipartisanship in National Defense

This week, New Democrat Coalition National Security Working Group Chair Gil Cisneros (CA-31) issued a statement following passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026.

Earlier this year, Chair Cisneros led 29 New Dem members in calling on Speaker Johnson to return to a serious, bipartisan approach as the House and Senate negotiated the final version of the NDAA.

"While this was not a perfect bill or process, the legislation delivers significant reforms. It raises pay for servicemembers as they contend with rising prices, recommits to our allies and partners in Europe and beyond, and provides much-needed oversight over this administration.

"Despite Congressional Republicans playing partisan politics at the last minute, this year's NDAA was produced primarily through months of good faith bipartisan negotiations led by our Ranking Member and New Dem colleague Adam Smith, and supported by the majority of our members. New Dems will continue to reach across the aisle to secure our nation's national defense and give our servicemembers and their families the support they deserve."

You can read the full letter to Speaker Johnson here and below:

Dear Speaker Johnson,

We write to express our disappointment in this year's hyper-partisan amendment process for the Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and urge you to return to a bipartisan approach during the upcoming conference negotiations.

The NDAA amendment process should be a serious, thoughtful discussion about how to address the critical needs of our national security, ensure readiness against our adversaries, and, most importantly, provide for our servicemembers and their families. For over 60 years, Congress has consistently passed this bill on time, demonstrating a unified commitment to our nation's defense. The FY26 NDAA passed through the House Armed Services Committee in July with overwhelming bipartisan support. It is therefore deeply disappointing that for the third consecutive year under a Republican led House, a historically bipartisan process was derailed by political maneuvers aimed to target matters not related to national security.

Instead of focusing on a commonsense approach to national security, the floor process was dominated by poison pill culture war amendments unrelated to the needs of the Department of Defense (DoD) and our men and women in uniform, resulting in a bill that took healthcare away from military dependents and reduced base commander authorities. In an effort to work on critical issues, members of the New Democrat Coalition submitted meaningful amendments that would have addressed the use of the U.S. military for domestic law enforcement; the unilateral decisions that eliminated DoD inspectors general, senior military leader positions, and highly qualified military lawyers; and the chaos that the Secretary of Defense has turned the Pentagon into.

The NDAA has served as the foundation for our national security priorities. Congress has an obligation to provide timely legislation to meet those needs. Members from both sides of the aisle have taken our role to exercise oversight of the DoD seriously and ensure that we can properly meet our national security and national defense needs.

We respectfully urge you to prioritize the needs of our servicemembers and the security of our nation over partisan politics. We ask that you return to the negotiating table with a commitment to a bipartisan path forward and stand ready to work with you to thoughtfully address our national security needs and restore the integrity of the NDAA process.