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Congress unveils $900B defense bill targeting China with tech bans, investment crackdown, US troop pay raise
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Congress released a $900 billion defense bill that reshapes U.S. economic and military competition with China by imposing new investment restrictions, banning a range of Chinese-made technologies from Pentagon supply chains, and expanding diplomatic and intelligence efforts to track Beijing’s global footprint.
The legislation, which authorizes War Department spending at $8 billion above the White House’s request, includes a 4% pay raise for enlisted service members, expands counter-drone authorities, and directs new investments in the Golden Dome missile defense shield and nuclear modernization programs.
It also extends Pentagon support to law enforcement operations at the southwest border and strengthens U.S. posture in the Indo-Pacific, including funding for Taiwan’s security cooperation program.
In a victory for conservative privacy hawks like House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, the legislation includes a non-defense provision that would mandate FBI disclosure when the bureau was investigating presidential candidates and other candidates for federal office.
That measure was the subject of party in-fighting last week when Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., whom Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., had appointed chairwoman of House GOP leadership, publicly accused the speaker of kowtowing to Democrats and allowing that provision to be removed.
WAR DEPARTMENT REFOCUSES ON AI, HYPERSONICS AND DIRECTED ENERGY IN MAJOR STRATEGY OVERHAUL
Johnson said he was blindsided by Stefanik’s anger and was unaware of her concerns when she had made them public.
Stefanik later claimed victory on X, stating the provision had been reinstated after a conversation between herself, Johnson and President Donald Trump.
Coverage of in vitro fertilization (IVF) for military families, which became a flashpoint in recent days, is not included in the final NDAA. Neither are provisions preempting states from regulating AI or banning a U.S. central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Republicans have pushed the CBDC prohibition as a privacy and civil-liberties measure, arguing that a government-issued digital dollar could give federal agencies the ability to monitor or restrict individual transactions.
House aides said the anti-CBDC language became tied to a separate housing-policy package known as «Road to Housing,» and the concessions required to keep both items together were unacceptable.
The bill also establishes a new «Artificial Intelligence Futures Steering Committee» charged with producing long-range forecasts and policy recommendations for advanced AI systems, including artificial general intelligence.
House and Senate negotiators released a $900 billion defense bill that reshapes U.S. economic and military competition with China by imposing new investment restrictions, banning a range of Chinese-made technologies from Pentagon supply chains, and expanding diplomatic and intelligence efforts to track Beijing’s global footprint. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The legislation takes aim at long-standing bottlenecks in the defense industrial base by authorizing new investment tools, expanding multi-year procurement for high-demand munitions and platforms, and overhauling portions of the acquisition system to speed the fielding of commercial and emerging technologies.
Alongside those reforms, lawmakers approved new «right-to-repair» style requirements that force contractors to provide the technical data the Pentagon needs to maintain and sustain major weapons systems—a change intended to reduce vendor lock-in and ease chronic maintenance delays across the fleet.
One major section of the bill establishes a far-reaching outbound investment screening system, requiring U.S. companies and investors to alert the Treasury Department when they back certain high-risk technologies in China or other «countries of concern.» The measure gives Treasury the ability to block deals outright, forces detailed annual reporting to Congress, and grants new authorities to sanction foreign firms tied to China’s military or surveillance networks. Lawmakers cast the effort as a long-overdue step to keep U.S. capital from fueling Beijing’s development of dual-use technologies.
US COULD LOSE NEXT MAJOR WAR DUE TO PENTAGON’S ‘BROKEN’ ACQUISITION SYSTEM
The bill also includes a procurement ban targeting biotechnology providers that would bar the Pentagon from contracting with Chinese genetic sequencing and biotech firms linked to the People’s Liberation Army or China’s security services.
Additional sourcing prohibitions restrict the War Department from purchasing items such as advanced batteries, photovoltaic components, computer displays, and critical minerals originating from foreign entities of concern, further tightening U.S. supply chains away from China. They also require the department to phase out the use of Chinese-made computers, printers and other tech equipment.
Beyond economic measures, the NDAA directs the State Department to deploy a new cadre of Regional China Officers at U.S. diplomatic posts around the world, responsible for monitoring Chinese commercial, technological, and infrastructure activities across every major geographic region, including Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
NDAA authorizes Pentagon budget at $8 billion above White House request. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP)
The NDAA contains several Israel-related provisions, including a directive for the Pentagon to avoid participating in international defense exhibitions that bar Israeli involvement. It authorizes funding for Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and Arrow – the missile defense programs the U.S. operates with Israel.
The bill also requires biennial reports comparing China’s global diplomatic presence to that of the United States. The Pentagon is separately directed to strengthen U.S. posture in the Indo-Pacific by extending the Pacific Deterrence Initiative and expanding cooperative training and industrial-base initiatives with regional allies, including Taiwan and the Philippines.
The legislation reauthorizes the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative at $400 million per year for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. Congress will also require more frequent reporting on allied contributions to Ukraine to track how European partners support Kyiv.
The bill repeals two long-dormant war authorizations tied to earlier phases of U.S. military involvement in Iraq, while leaving the primary post-9/11 counterterrorism authority untouched. Lawmakers said the final text includes repeals of the 1991 Gulf War AUMF and the 2002 Iraq War AUMF, both of which successive administrations have said are no longer operationally necessary. The 1991 authorization approved the U.S.-led effort to expel Iraqi forces from Kuwait, and the 2002 authority permitted the invasion of Iraq under President George W. Bush.
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Both parties have debated winding down these authorizations for years, arguing they no longer reflect current U.S. missions in the Middle East. Presidents from both parties, including Trump, have maintained that modern military operations in the region do not rely on either statute and that the commander in chief already holds sufficient Article II authority to defend U.S. personnel when required. Repeal also answers long-running concerns in Congress about outdated war authorities being used as secondary legal justifications for actions far from their original intent, such as the 2020 strike on Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
The NDAA does not touch the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, which remains the central legal basis for U.S. counter-terror operations against al-Qaeda, ISIS, and associated groups. That post-9/11 statute continues to underpin nearly all active U.S. counter-terror missions worldwide.
House aides said leaders in their chamber hoped to consider the bill as soon as this week. It will first need to go through the House Rules Committee, the final gatekeepers before legislation gets a chamber-wide vote. It could hit that panel as early as Tuesday afternoon.
Then it will head for a vote in the Senate before reaching Trump’s desk for his signature.
pentagon defense,spending,house of representatives politics,budget senate
El Grupo Patio, considerado uno de los holdings inmobiliarios más destacados de Chile, atraviesa una grave crisis interna derivada de acusaciones de manipulación en la valoración de la compañía y la presentación de querellas por parte de accionistas y afectados.
La empresa, fundada a comienzos de los años 2000 por la familia Jalaff, cuenta con más de USD 4.000 millones en activos y opera en Chile, Perú, México y Estados Unidos. En los últimos años, el grupo se consolidó como un referente en el mercado inmobiliario latinoamericano.
La crisis actual se originó tras la aparición de actas de directorio que reflejan presuntas malas prácticas y decisiones cuestionables. Este conflicto, reportan medios locales, ha generado una crisis de confianza, que podría limitar el acceso a financiamiento y afectar la relación con acreedores y la percepción general del mercado.
El foco del conflicto se sitúa en la determinación del precio de la participación de Antonio Jalaff, uno de los fundadores, basada en un informe elaborado por la consultora Econsult.
Un grupo de 23 aportantes y herederos de la familia Jalaff presentaron acciones judiciales, argumentando que el informe fue solicitado y financiado por quienes buscaban adquirir esas acciones, dando lugar, según su denuncia, a una valoración artificialmente baja.
Para la querella no hay dudas de que dicho informe fue solicitado y financiado por los compradores, lo que habría resultado en una apreciación artificialmente deprimida del real valor de Grupo Patio.
Según la querella, el informe de Econsult “construyó una imagen económica distorsionada y artificialmente depreciada del Grupo Patio, generando una apariencia falsa sobre el estado financiero del conglomerado”.
A esto se añade, según la denuncia, la falta de transparencia en la metodología, generando cuestionamientos sobre la objetividad del valor fijado y un fuerte impacto en el fondo administrado por el holding.
En declaraciones recogidas por Diario Financiero, Antonio Jalaff manifestó su inquietud sobre el daño sufrido por la empresa y su propia reputación. “Aquí hay gente que ha hecho malas prácticas para inflar su trayectoria empresarial y su ego, a costa del daño económico a acreedores que confiaron en mí y en una compañía que fundé junto a mi padre”, afirmó.
Ante el 4º Juzgado de Garantía de Santiago, Antonio Jalaff presentó una querella por estafa. En ella sostiene que la venta de su participación se realizó bajo una “maquinación fraudulenta”. El perjuicio económico estimado alcanza las 700.000 UF (unos USD 28,5 millones), al haberse concretado la operación a un precio que describe como artificialmente disminuido.
Jalaff denunció: “No nos quedó otra opción. Fueron los compradores y sus asesores quienes impusieron el valor final de la venta, y nos vimos obligados a aceptarlo… nunca aprobé la venta a ese precio, sino que fui arrastrado por las circunstancias y los quórums de las respectivas sociedades”, afirmó entonces.
Álvaro Jalaff sostuvo una posición similar y acusó en El Mostrador, que otros accionistas buscaron aislar a su familia, facilitando el control hostil del grupo.
La operación fue estructurada por Larraín Vial, la mayor corredora de bolsa y firma de finanzas corporativas de Chile. Su historial reciente, que incluye otros escándalo de corrucpción conocido como el caso Factop, agrega presión reputacional al proceso.
Las repercusiones de este caso se extienden más allá del ámbito judicial, impactan la confianza en la gobernanza corporativa y la transparencia financiera dentro de los grandes conglomerados regionales. Los efectos, advierten medios locales, podrían convertirse en un precedente para la gestión empresarial y la dinámica de poder en el sector inmobiliario de Chile y Latinoamérica.
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Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro’s regime was crucial to propping up America’s closest Communist neighbor, Cuba, for many years — but with the despot now in a New York prison, U.S. lawmakers and analysts are turning their attention to Mexico, a top U.S. ally and trading partner that has quietly taken Venezuela’s place.
As of January, Mexico reportedly accounted for 13,000 barrels per day, or 44%, of Cuba’s 2025 oil imports, the top factor keeping what some lawmakers describe as a teetering economy barely afloat. With renewed trade talks approaching in July, Republican lawmakers and conservative analysts are calling for increased pressure on Mexico to cut off Cuba’s oil lifeline.
The Trump administration is also weighing instituting a maritime blockade on oil imports to Cuba, according to Politico. The outlet noted that the move would be an escalation of its previously-stated plan to cut off imports from Venezuela, where Maduro’s former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez is now acting president. Such a blockade could spur crisis in the country and lead to the economic collapse of the Castro/Diaz-Canel regime for which much of the U.S. diaspora has long hoped.
«The Cuban government was, even before this action with Maduro, probably at the weakest point that the regime has been in the last 65 years,» said Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., the only Cuban-born member of Congress.
AS TRUMP URGES DEAL, CUBAN PRESIDENT WARNS THAT THE COUNTRY WILL DEFEND ITSELF ‘TO THE LAST DROP OF BLOOD’
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, left; Cuban dictator Miguel Diaz-Canel, right. (Sergio Morales/Getty Images; Jesus Vargas/Getty Images)
«This just makes them weaker. My one concern is that it appears that Mexico is now trying to prop them up. And so, the oil that they were receiving from Venezuela is now being supplanted by oil being received by Mexico.»
The Florida Republican said Mexico is in such a position in part because it is «governed by a Marxist,» casting criticism of socialist-party-aligned President Claudia Sheinbaum.
«The oil that they were receiving from Venezuela is now being supplanted by oil being received by Mexico,» he said.
«It doesn’t matter that [the Miguel Diaz-Canel] regime [in Cuba] has been suppressing and oppressing its people for 65 years, as long as they have the right ideology.»
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Gimenez said that Congress could use upcoming intracontinental trade talks over the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to pressure Sheinbaum to stop supporting the dictatorship just 90 miles from Fort Zachary Taylor, at the southern tip of his district.
Cuba is already experiencing rolling blackouts, inability to feed its people, medical shortages and a nosedive in tourism due to those developments, he said.
«Would it be okay for us to kind of nudge them over the edge? I don’t know a problem with that,» he quipped.
SENATE REPUBLICAN PREDICTS THE FALL OF THE CUBAN REGIME
Andres Martinez-Fernandez, a Latin America and national security policy analyst who leads the Heritage Foundation’s research on the region, told Fox News Digital that U.S. tolerance for Mexico’s new position may not last.
«It’s a major issue,» he said, adding the Mexico-Cuba relationship got to «worrying levels» under Sheinbaum’s predecessor and now involves a Cuban medical program he called «forced slavery for revenue» involving Cuban doctors arriving in Mexico and sending remittances home – much of which can get funneled to the regime.
If Mexico City wants to continue aiding Havana, it had better prepare for «severe pushback,» he said, similarly citing the USMCA negotiations that Gimenez mentioned.
CUBA’S PRESIDENT DEFIANT, SAYS NO NEGOTIATIONS SCHEDULED AS TRUMP MOVES TO CHOKE OFF OIL LIFELINE
Those aspects, along with President Donald Trump’s discontent with Sheinbaum’s resistance to U.S. action against cartels could come to a head, he suggested, calling Mexico’s attitude «mendacious and duplicitous.»
«It says nothing good if they decide, to maintain this overt support for the Cuban regime as we continue to see this inadequate action on the cartel front.»
Trump declared earlier this month that there will be «no more oil or money going to Cuba – Zero» and the Department of War has been seizing sanctioned «shadow-fleet» oil tankers.
A White House official said Cuba is failing of its own volition and that its rulers suffered a major setback in losing support from the ousted Maduro regime. Trump believes Cuba should make a deal «before it is too late.»
Meanwhile, the aforementioned USMCA talks are scheduled to take place in July, when the trilateral trade deal undergoes a scheduled review.
The U.S. is likely to seek additional concessions from Mexico and Canada amid trade disputes, the Center for Strategic and International Studies predicted last year, with the interceding Mexico-Cuba development likely to further invigorate such demands.
VENEZUELA’S ACTING LEADER WAS ONCE A DEA ‘PRIORITY TARGET’: REPORT
A man waves a Cuban flag at a protest. (Yamil Lage/Getty Images)
The Sheinbaum administration, which did not respond to a request for comment, has reportedly painted its shipments as «humanitarian aid» for the Cuban people.
If Mexico continues oil shipments, it may lead to additionally tense relations between the U.S. and its southern neighbor, already frayed by Trump’s disdain for Sheinbaum’s steadfast refusal to allow American intercession against drug cartels.
If the shipments slacken, that may portend well for the aforementioned upcoming trade negotiations.
As for Cuba, many pro-democracy voices, particularly among the South Florida diaspora, hope the 66-year Castro/Diaz-Canel regime is not long for this world.
Martinez-Fernandez added the regime is likely facing one of the most difficult moments in its history; Mexico’s role aside.
RUBIO LAYS OUT THREE-PHASE PLAN FOR VENEZUELA AFTER MADURO: ‘NOT JUST WINGING IT’
In the 1990s, Cuba lost its larger «patron,» the Soviet Union, he said, and hit a rough patch until Hugo Chavez took power in 1999.
He added that while there has been Western concern about a Chinese foothold there, Beijing appears to have largely «cut ties» and said «there’s nothing new here.»
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«I do think that there is a likely need for additional developments before we see… That kind of next step collapse of the regime itself,» he said.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House, Commerce Department and the Palacio Nacional for comment.
venezuelan political crisis,cuba,mexico,location mexico,donald trump,energy
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