NJN Slams House Passage of NDAA as the Wrong Bill at the Wrong Moment

July 22, 2026 – As President Trump’s ill-conceived and illegal war with Iran escalates and American service members are being killed in the fighting, the House of Representatives chose today to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) – a bill that moves US policy in exactly the wrong direction. This bill not only deepens financial support for this war, it also makes it harder for the US to apply meaningful leverage on the Israeli government.

One of the bill’s most troubling provisions is Section 219, which establishes a "United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative" inside the Pentagon. This language is part of a plan to shift US assistance from direct tax-payer funded financial support to a new mechanism that embeds American financial support for Israel within Pentagon procurement and coproduction agreements. The end result is that US support for the Israeli military will be nearly impossible to condition, stop, or detangle from broader US defense priorities.

The House passed this bill at precisely the moment when Americans want to see more pressure applied to change the Israeli government’s behavior – not less – and when the costs of the Iran war are being measured in American lives.

Hadar Susskind, President and CEO of New Jewish Narrative, said: 

"The House was wrong to pass the NDAA today. It deepens financial support for the Iran war that Americans want to see end. It’s particularly galling that they passed it in the same week as four American servicemembers were killed. 

“The bill also insulates the Israeli government from pressure. Given the choices made by the Israeli government – including in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon – Congress should be looking for new tools to increase Israeli accountability, not to make that more difficult."