Congress is returning to override Trump's veto of a popular defense spending bill


When Congress passed the $2.3 trillion omnibus 2021 spending bill and COVID-19 relief package last week, lawmakers were hoping their business had concluded until the 117th Congress is sworn in Jan. 3. President Trump ended those hopes last week when he vetoed the National Defense Authorization Act, a $740 billion Pentagon spending and policy bill that Congress and the White House have delivered on time every year for decades.
The NDAA passed with veto-proof bipartisan majorities in both the House and Senate, and both chambers will return this week to see if those majorities hold to override Trump's veto. The House will vote on Monday, and if it quashes the veto, as expected, the Senate is expected to vote on Tuesday. This would be the first time Congress has overridden one of Trump's rare vetoes. Trump objects to a provision in the bill directing the Pentagon to rename military bases named after Confederate generals, and also the lack of language repealing an unrelated measure granting social media and other internet platforms broad legal liability for content posted by their users.
The House at least will also vote Monday on legislation that would increase to $2,000 the $600 direct COVID-19 stimulus checks included in a $900 billion pandemic relief bill Trump signed Sunday night. That is the only one of Trump's post-signing demands Congress will likely take up during his last three weeks in office. Republicans generally oppose raising the amount of the stimulus checks, and while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he will try to force a vote on the House legislation, objections from Senate Republicans are all but guaranteed to sink the effort.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The last-minute lame-duck veto override attempts, Politico notes, are "the latest whiplash for the 116th Congress, which began with an epic 35-day government shutdown and will end with twin public health and economic crises."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
September 14 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include RFK Jr on the hook, the destruction of discourse, and more
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-war
Talking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Russia slams Kyiv, hits government building
Speed Read This was Moscow's largest aerial assault since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022
-
China's Xi hosts Modi, Putin, Kim in challenge to US
Speed Read Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Asian leaders at an SCO summit
-
Russian strike on Kyiv kills 23, hits EU offices
Speed Read The strike was the second-largest since Russia invaded in 2022
-
UN votes to end Lebanon peacekeeping mission
Speed Read The Trump administration considers the UN's Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to be a 'waste of money'
-
Israeli double strike on Gaza hospital kills 20
Speed Read The dead include five journalists who worked for The Associated Press, Reuters and Al Jazeera
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American cities
Under the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
Kyiv marks independence as Russia downplays peace
Speed Read President Vladimir Putin has no plans to meet with Zelenskyy for peace talks pushed by President Donald Trump
-
Trump halts Gaza visas as Israelis protest war
Speed Read Laura Loomer voiced her concerns over injured Palestinian kids being brought to the US for treatment and a potential 'Islamic invasion'