Thread by @ddeanjohnson, Here is an update on the status of the congressional defense/intelligence legislation. [...]

Here is an update on the status of the congressional defense/intelligence legislation. Warning: this gets into the weeds a bit! Quick review: Last summer, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), in its report explaining its Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA),

directed the Director of National Intelligence to produce a report on UAP within 6 months of enactment. The Senate later embedded the IAA inside its National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)(S. 4049), passing the combo bill on July 23, 2020. History here:
https://twitter.com/ddeanjohnson/status/1286631552240308224?s=20

https://twitter.com/ddeanjohnson/status/1286631552240308224?s=20

The House of Representatives also passed a version of NDAA, H.R. 6395, on July 21, 2020, but it did not contain an IAA, nor has the House passed a separate IAA. The House Intelligence Committee did approve an IAA (H.R. 7856) on July 31, and issued a committee report

explaining its IAA bill on Oct. 30. Neither the House committee bill or its associated committee report contain any reference to UAP (unlike the Senate IAA committee report).
#ufotwitter

[On 9-29-20, the House Armed Services Cmte issued a special report from its ad hoc 8-member Future of Defense Task Force. This task force on March 11 had received a classified briefing on UAP from Naval intelligence staff. However, the 87-page report contained no mention of UAP.]

After behind-scenes negotiations, on Nov. 16, as a run-up to a formal House-Senate conference committee, the Senate took up the House NDAA. In moments, the Senate replaced the entire House-passed bill with the text of the combo bill the Senate had originally passed on July 23.

In other words, the Senate on Nov. 16 re-passed its original defense authorization bill, but now under the House bill number. This means that from now on, the bill number to watch is H.R. 6395!

Thus, the Senate comes to conference with the combo NDAA-IAA bill it passed 7-23-20, now reincarnated as the Senate-passed version of H.R. 6395; and the House comes to conference with its original H.R. 6395 text, as passed on 7-21-20. BUT House conferees also want the final bill

to incorporate provisions from its committee-approved IAA bill (H.R. 7856), even though that bill did not pass the House. This is an irregular process sometimes referred to as "air dropping." This irregularity has been a complicating factor in ongoing Senate-House negotiations.

"Resolution of the pertinent IAA provisions is a matter of ongoing discussion," a House committee aide familiar with the situation tersely told me on Oct. 28--referring not to the UAP language linked to the Senate bill, but to the overall situation with respect to IAA provisions.

On Nov. 18, the House Speaker named conferees-- 83 in all! The largest number are Armed Services committee members, but three members of House Intelligence were included to negotiate the IAA-related provisions. Oddly, the Senate has not yet formally named conferees.

Nevertheless, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-Ok.) on Nov. 18 chaired an initial bicameral closed-door meeting, which for practical purposes can be regarded as the start of the conference. It will continue after Thanksgiving.
https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/press-releases/armed-services-committees-advance-fiscal-year-conference-process-at-annual-pass-the-gavel-meeting

Top Armed Services and Intelligence committee members of both parties very much want to get their legislation enacted before the current Congress ends in late December. Congress has enacted a defense authorization bill for 59 years in a row.

However, a veto threat and related controversy (over the issue of military bases that are currently named after Confederate generals) could derail the entire package. https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2020/11/17/formal-ndaa-talks-begin-under-shadow-of-confederate-renaming-issue/

Formal NDAA talks to begin under shadow of Confederate renaming issue

U.S. House and Senate conferees will meet Wednesday to wrangle over massive 2021 defense authorization bill, but they still face potentially bill-derailing fights over whether to keep plans requiring...

https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2020/11/17/formal-ndaa-talks-begin-under-shadow-of-confederate-renaming-issue/

Thus, the overall prospects for enactment of the NDAA in December are somewhat unclear, and the prospects for the IAA (to which the SSCI's UAP directive is linked) being retained in the final bill is even murkier. I will provide updates as warranted.

Supporters of the SSCI UAP directive can take solace that even if the vehicle bill dies in Dec., the SSCI UAP directive stands as an expression of the will of the Senate. Key senators can be expected to revisit the issue with the DNI during 2021, even if the bill falls short.

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