Keep the U.S. and Israeli Militaries Separate

Talking Points for Calls & Emails

Section 219 was written into a "must-pass" military funding bill specifically to shield it from the annual appropriations process — locking in permanent defense integration without a stand-alone vote.

It obligates the U.S. but not Israel, and would make it far harder for any future Congress or administration to scale back cooperation, regardless of Israel's conduct.

This is not traditional military aid — it embeds Israeli-origin technology directly into U.S. weapons programs and supply chains.

A bipartisan coalition (Massie, Khanna, and progressive and libertarian members alike) has tried twice to force a floor vote to strip it, and leadership has blocked debate both times.

The next and possibly final opportunity to remove it is the House–Senate conference committee later this year — this is the moment for constituent pressure on conferees.

What it is: Section 219 of the House's FY2027 NDAA (H.R. 8800) — Section 1217 in the Senate version — would create a "United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative." It requires the Defense Secretary to designate a Pentagon "executive agent" to oversee accelerated integration of Israeli and U.S. defense research, development, and supply chains, covering areas like AI, autonomous systems, cyber, quantum computing, and missile defense. Human Rights Watch notes it would be reinforced by section 622 of the intelligence bill, mandating expanded intelligence sharing with Israel. FactuallyHuman Rights Watch

House: Passed 216-212 on July 22, almost entirely along party lines — Republicans 209-7 in favor, Democrats 205-6 against. Reps. Massie (R-KY) and Khanna (D-CA) tried to force a floor vote to strip the section, but the House Rules Committee refused to make their amendment eligible for consideration. Common DreamsCommon Dreams

Senate: Stalled. The Senate voted July 14 on whether to begin debating its bill; the cloture motion failed 50-46, ten votes short of the 60 needed, with all 50 "yes" votes coming from Republicans. Majority Leader Thune cast a tactical "no" to preserve his ability to bring it back, and later withdrew a second motion to proceed on July 23. Opposition was led by Sens. Van Hollen and Sanders, though Democratic leadership's stated objections centered mainly on the Iran war rather than Section 219/1217 specifically. Military.com + 2

What's next: Reconciling the House and Senate texts isn't expected before November or December — so this heads to conference committee, where the two chambers negotiate a final version before it goes to the president. Khanna has said the fight now moves to stripping it there. Uprise RI