President Donald Trump is threatening to veto a bill to fund the armed forces unless an amendment to rename bases honoring Confederate military leaders is removed, NBC News reported on Monday.
White House, defense, and congressional sources said that since the election, the president has privately told GOP lawmakers that he won't back down from his stance.
Trump's position has put in doubt legislation for the annual National Defense Authorization Act that had been agreed to by Republicans and Democrats in the House and the Senate, including the widely supported, bipartisan provision for renaming the bases.
Democrats are refusing to budge on the provision, which was passed overwhelmingly by both the House and Senate, with three dozen Senate Democrats writing a letter strongly opposing the removal of the amendment.
"Millions of servicemembers of color have lived on, trained at, and deployed from installations named to honor traitors that killed Americans in defense of chattel slavery," the letter stated. "Renaming these bases does not disrespect our military – it honors the sacrifices and contributions of our servicemembers in a way that better reflects our nation’s diversity and values."
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe said that "only the president can say whether or not there's any room for a negotiation," adding he doubts that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would put any bill up for a vote on the floor "that has a veto on it."
© 2021 Newsmax. All rights reserved.