Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz were among 24 Senate Democrats who voted Wednesday against “a wide-ranging bill that would set policy and spending priorities for the Pentagon.”

The vote was 70 to 27, with three presidential candidates — Republicans Ted Cruz and Rand Paul and independent-sorta-Democrat Bernie Sanders  also voting “nay.”

The $612 billion National Defense Authorization Act “has been pulled into the larger battle over the GOP’s budget plan, which would appropriate $38 billion to the Pentagon through a war fund account,” says The Hill.

Hirono released a statement after the vote complaining that President Obama has vowed to veto the bill because of its use of the Overseas Contingency Operations fund as “a budget gimmick” to fund the Department of Defense without addressing sequestration.

“Military leaders have testified on how the sequester will cripple readiness and service member morale,” she said. “This Conference Report (accompanying the legislation) does not responsibly address these concerns, instead using OCO to bypass the sequester, leaving domestic programs, including funding for civilian agencies that are critical to national security, to bear the full brunt.”

She added, “We’re one country, and our budget should reflect that value.”