House Armed Services chairman, top Republican urge passage of compromise defense bill without Section 230 repeal

The leaders of the House Armed Services Committee urged lawmakers and others to set aside “partisan preferences” Wednesday as they formally announced a bicameral compromise on must-pass defense legislation that does not include President Trump’s demand to repeal a legal shield for tech companies.

“For 59 straight years, the NDAA has passed because members of Congress and presidents of both parties have set aside their own policy objectives and partisan preferences and put the needs of our military personnel and America’s security first,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Rep. Mac Thornberry (Texas), the top Republican on the panel, said in a joint statement, referring to the National Defense Authorization Act.

“The time has come to do that again,” they added.

Negotiators will begin signing the compromise, known as a conference report, a 5 p.m. Wednesday, a House aide familiar with the compromise bill said.

Smith and Thornberry’s statement does not explicitly mention Trump’s demand, but it comes after he threatened to veto the NDAA if a repeal of what’s known as Section 230 is not included in the bill.

The House aide confirmed the compromise does not include any language on Section 230. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe (R-Okla.) earlier Wednesday also said language on Section 230 was not in the bill.

The 1996 law gives online platforms liability protection for content posted by third parties while also allowing them to make good faith content moderation efforts.

Trump and his Republican allies argue the law allows social media companies to discriminate against conservative content, despite the fact that conservative content is often amplified instead.

“Section 230, which is a liability shielding gift from the U.S. to ‘Big Tech’ (the only companies in America that have it – corporate welfare!), is a serious threat to our National Security & Election Integrity. Our Country can never be safe & secure if we allow it to stand,” Trump tweeted Tuesday night.

“Therefore, if the very dangerous & unfair Section 230 is not completely terminated as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), I will be forced to unequivocally VETO the Bill when sent to the very beautiful Resolute desk. Take back America NOW. Thank you!” Trump added.

Trump had already threatened to veto the NDAA over a requirement for the Pentagon to rename Confederate-named military bases.

Both the initial House and Senate versions of the NDAA included language requiring the Pentagon to rename military bases and other property bearing Confederate monikers.

The deal announced Wednesday follows the original Senate language, Inhofe and the House aide confirmed. The language, authored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), would mandate changes in three years and establish a commission to develop a plan to carry out the renamings.