A push to merge the US and Israeli militaries through a defense bill provision is running into public backlash — bad for the merger's backers, good for critics who say it hands US security to a foreign government.

• A provision called Section 219 in the defense bill would tie US and Israeli military technology and supply chains together, which critics say would let Israel control key US capabilities.
• Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, flipped and now wants it stripped out after heavy pressure from voters.
• Backers argue the US needs Israel's fast defense tech to compete with China, an argument critics call a weak excuse for a country spending a trillion dollars a year on its own military.
• An amendment from Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie to remove the provision was blocked without a vote, and they plan to try again.
• New AP polling shows over 60% of Jewish Americans oppose the Netanyahu government, cutting against claims that any criticism of Israel is antisemitic.

Outlook: The fight now moves to a renewed effort to strip Section 219 when the House takes the defense bill back up, with pressure building to force an actual vote.