Senate to tackle Defense bill Wednesday

The Senate will bring up the compromise Defense authorization bill on the floor next Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Friday.

{mosads}The National Defense Authorization Act will be one of the last bills the Senate considers when it adjourns for the year.

Reid said that the Defense bill would be taken up one day after the Senate will consider the budget deal that was reached earlier this week.

Both the Defense bill and the budget deal were passed by the House on Thursday, before the lower chamber left Washington for the rest of the year.

The Defense bill passed 350-69 in the House. Some Republicans in the Senate have objected to considering the Defense bill without getting a chance to vote on any more amendments.

Reid also said that the Senate was avoiding weekend work, and it would vote on the confirmation of Jeh Johnson to be Homeland Security secretary on Monday.