The issue focused on the part of the bill that the sponsor, Tom Reed, said will be controversial: a portion that would allow veterans to petition the court to forgive prison time received for the crimes of their service in the military. The $1.2 trillion National Defense Authorization Act for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 also requires the attorney general to obtain a waiver from the Defense Department for almost any waiver not requested by Congress.


Attorney General Jeff Sessions has argued that such an amendment to the law