President Trump signed a $716 billion defense bill into law Monday but also issued a statement claiming he does not have to adhere to the parts of the legislation that limit his executive power.
Among the 50 provisions of the law that Trump disputed late Monday in a White House statement were sections that require formal justification for any administration activities that recognize Russian sovereignty over Crimea ...
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Trump did not expressly say that his administration would refuse to abide by the provisions. Instead, he said he would implement them where feasible and consistent with his authority as commander in chief and sole representative of the nation in foreign affairs.
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Since Trump became president, Congress has grown more assertive in circumscribing the executive branch’s foreign and defense policies, with lawmakers from both parties fearing the president will cozy up to Russia, remove troops from South Korea or take other steps they see as harmful to U.S. interests.
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The White House took issue in particular with certain provisions that appeared to be responding to prior Trump comments ... provisions [that] sought to box the administration into taking a harder line against Russia after Trump spelled out his desire for warmer relations with Moscow and left open the possibility of recognizing Russian sovereignty over Crimea, the peninsula Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
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“This Congress and NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) are pushing the envelope a little more in terms of trying to guide or constrain national security policy,” Anderson said.
That includes measures seeking to prevent Trump, for example, from giving Moscow a pass on potential arms-control violations or resuming Pentagon cooperation with the Russian military.
Trump disputes parts of defense law as an affront to his authority (WaPo)
Statement by President Donald J. Trump on H.R. 5515 (White House)