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ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Donald Trump signed the John McCain National Defense Authorization Act for the Fiscal Year 2019, during a signing ceremony today, in Fort Drum, N.Y.
FORT DRUM, N.Y. >> President Donald Trump has signed a $716 billion defense policy bill named for John McCain after delivering remarks that failed to mention the ailing senator.
The measure Trump signed today at New York’s Fort Drum will boost military pay by 2.6 percent, the largest hike in nine years.
The bill weakens a bid to clamp down on Chinese telecom company ZTE. It allows Trump to waive sanctions against countries that bought Russian weapons and now want to buy U.S. military equipment. The bill provides no money for Trump’s requested Space Force but authorizes the military parade he wants in Washington in November.
The measure also addresses child-on-child sexual assault at U.S. military bases worldwide. The issue was revealed this spring in an Associated Press investigation.
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