A New Chapter in the US-Israel Alliance

“In preparing for war, I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” -Dwight D. Eisenhower

“In preparing for war, I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”

The US House has passed the most expensive bill in American history, and buried inside it is a provision that’s dividing both parties. Lawmakers voted 216 to 212 to pass the fiscal year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – a bill worth $1.15 trillion. But the real controversy isn’t the price tag; it’s section 219, a measure that would merge American and Israeli military technology and supply chains. 

Republican Congressman Thomas Massie put it bluntly, warning that the country should not be merging its military tech and supply chain with Israel’s. He and Democrat Ro Khanna tried to strip the provision out entirely. Their amendment never even got a vote. Thus, once again the decades-long bromance between the US and Israel is in the limelight.

The National Defense Authorization Act will approve approximately $1.15 trillion for defense spending, including pay increases of 5%-7% for military personnel, increased weapon and ammunition manufacturing, and additional spending on missile defense, autonomous technologies, hypersonics, and other future technologies. It will also rename the Department of Defense as the Department of War, making any mention of the Secretary of Defense or the Department of Defense in any legislation refer to the Secretary of War and the Department of War.

What does Section 219 of the bill say?

Section 219 of the bill actually creates a permanent Pentagon position just to oversee joint weapons development and expanded intelligence sharing with Israel, giving Israel a level of military integration most NATO allies don’t even have. Section 219 provides for the creation of an initiative called the “United States–Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative.” 

Under this project, jointly developed or Israeli-developed technologies that could be integrated into the United States system would be identified; collaborative research programs involving both governments, industry, and academe from both countries should safeguard “sensitive technology”; and finally, military efforts in........

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