Will at least 10 Democrats vote for cloture on the defense authorization bill before Aug 8?

Fewer than 10 Democrats voted for cloture on the defense authorization bill before the Senate's August recess — in fact, none did. On July 14, 2026, the Senate voted 50-46 against invoking cloture on a motion to proceed to the $1.15 trillion National Defense Authorization Act, well short of the 60 votes needed. All 50 votes in favor came from Republicans; the 46 no votes included 43 Democrats, independents Angus King of Maine and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and Majority Leader John Thune, who switched his vote for procedural reasons to preserve a future motion to reconsider. Democrats said they would not support advancing the bill while Trump was escalating military action against Iran, and some also objected to provisions expanding U.S. military and intelligence cooperation with Israel and to the record size of the Pentagon budget. No subsequent cloture attempt with greater Democratic support occurred before the Senate adjourned for recess on Aug. 8. Predict Six's community unanimously expected at least 10 Democrats to back cloture, but with only two votes cast, that forecast was far off from the party-line result.