A legislative rider is a policy provision added to an appropriations bill or other must-pass legislation that wouldn't survive on its own as standalone legislation. Riders are a standard tool in congressional bargaining: members use them to enact policy without requiring a separate floor vote. In the FY2027 MILCON-VA bill, riders included the gun-rights court-order requirement and the prohibition on closing Guantanamo Bay. Riders can be blocked in the Senate under the Byrd Rule if they are attached to reconciliation bills, but they face no such restriction on regular appropriations measures. Opponents of riders argue they bypass deliberate committee review; proponents say they're necessary to move policy through gridlocked chambers.