Pentagon

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Biden Asks Trump Holdover to Run Pentagon, Temporarily

David Norquist will run Pentagon until Biden pick Lloyd Austin is confirmed

(Newser) - The history books will reflect that Joe Biden's very first defense secretary was an appointee of Donald Trump. But David Norquist will not be in the role very long. Politico reports that Biden will ask Norquist, who currently serves as deputy secretary of defense, to run the Pentagon until...

Pelosi Calls Pentagon, Worried About Nuclear Codes

Joint chiefs chairman discusses steps involved should president try to order a military strike

(Newser) - The Pentagon has assured House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that there are barriers to President Trump ordering a nuclear strike before he leaves office, reports USA Today . Pelosi told House Democrats in a letter Friday that she'd spoken to "Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley to...

Trump: I&#39;m Planning to Veto $740B Bill
Trump: I'm Vetoing That Bill
Dec 13, 2020 12:55 PM CST

Trump: I'm Vetoing That Bill

The president tweets about $740B defense policy bill

(Newser) - President Trump on Sunday tweeted that he intends to veto a wide-ranging defense policy bill, raising new but unspecified concerns about China as a reason to reject a traditionally bipartisan measure with a nearly 60-year track record of being signed into law, the AP reports. "The biggest winner of...

US Commander Names America's 'Biggest Enemy'

Gen. Mark Milley warns that a 'great-power war' would be a 'disaster'

(Newser) - America's military priority in the coming years? China, China, and China—or so says the top US military commander. Speaking at a Wall Street Journal summit Tuesday, Army Gen. Mark Milley said China is aiming to equal America's military might by 2035 and be ready to win a...

Biden's Pentagon Pick Already Controversial

Lloyd Austin is only recently retired from the military

(Newser) - President-elect Biden will nominate retired four-star Army general Lloyd J. Austin to be secretary of defense, according to four people familiar with the decision who spoke to the AP . If confirmed by the Senate, Austin would be the first Black leader of the Pentagon. Biden selected Austin over the longtime...

WH Abruptly Fires DoD Advisers, Installs Trump Allies

Trump loyalists Corey Lewandowski, David Bossie among new members of Pentagon advisory board

(Newser) - Less than a month after President Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper , the White House conducted an abrupt mass firing Friday of nine members of a Pentagon advisory board, putting in their place Trump allies. Per Politico , the removed members of the Defense Business Board received a terse email from...

For US Troops, Thanksgiving Will Be Very Different

Pentagon warns against dining hall gatherings

(Newser) - The Pentagon has shipped over a quarter million pounds of Thanksgiving dinner, including 51,000 pounds of roast turkey, to troops serving overseas—but their holiday dinners will be a very different experience this year. The Defense Department says that to stop the spread of COVID at overseas bases, Thanksgiving...

Flournoy May Not Be a Shoo-In for Defense After All

Sources tell Politico that Biden is still mulling his options for defense secretary

(Newser) - President-elect Joe Biden is hard at work making picks for his administration, with reports already circulating on his choices for secretary of state, Homeland Security chief, and director of national intelligence, among others. But one key role tied to national security is still up in the air: secretary of defense,...

NATO Chief Responds to Trump's Troop Cuts

ISIS could take advantage of the vacuum in Afghanistan, secretary-general says

(Newser) - President Trump's plan to reduce US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq in the next two months drew a warning Tuesday from NATO. "The price for leaving too soon or in an uncoordinated way could be very high," said Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, per the BBC . He said Afghanistan...

Frontrunner for Biden Defense Chief Would Make History

Michele Flournoy, who served at Pentagon under Obama, would be first woman in role

(Newser) - As President-elect Biden starts to make picks for his administration, one name being floated for a Cabinet position would be a historic one. The Hill reports that a frontrunner to head the Defense Department is Michele Flournoy, who served as the department's undersecretary of defense for policy under President...

Trump: Defense Chief &#39;Has Been Terminated&#39;
Trump Fires Defense Secretary
Nov 9, 2020 1:05 PM CST

Trump Fires Defense Secretary

Mark Esper 'has been terminated'

(Newser) - In what could be the start of a wave of post-election firings, President Trump announced in a tweet Monday that Defense Secretary Mark Esper "has been terminated." The president said National Counterterrorism Director Christopher Miller will become acting defense secretary effective immediately. The Hill notes that Trump and...

General Tests Positive After Pentagon Meeting

Marine deputy commandant was at Joint Chiefs meeting with infected Coast Guard leader

(Newser) - The assistant commandant of the Marine Corps has tested positive for the coronavirus, days after he and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff were in a Pentagon meeting with a Coast Guard leader who was infected with the virus. The Marine Corps said Wednesday that Gen. Gary L. Thomas...

Report: Joint Chiefs of Staff Are in Quarantine
Pentagon Leaders
Now in Quarantine
Oct 6, 2020 2:07 PM CDT

Pentagon Leaders Now in Quarantine

Coast Guard commander has tested positive

(Newser) - The pandemic has reached the highest levels of the Pentagon as well as the White House. Sources tell CNN that most of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are in quarantine because Adm. Charles Ray, vice commandant of the US Coast Guard, tested positive for the coronavirus on Monday. The sources...

Stars and Stripes Newspaper Is Ordered to Shut Down

Members of Congress are trying to keep independent military paper going

(Newser) - Stars and Stripes, the independent military newspaper that's informed the troops while sometimes being a thorn in the side of the brass since the Civil War, has been told to close up shop. The Trump administration proposed slashing its $15.5 million funding in February, Axios reports, but the...

Pentagon: China Is Working to Double Size of Nuke Arsenal

But country currently only has modest number of warheads, report states

(Newser) - China currently has fewer nuclear warheads than France, but it is working hard to double that number in the next decade, the Pentagon says. The Pentagon, releasing its estimate of China's warheads for the first time, believes they number in the low 200s, compared to around 300 for France...

Pentagon's UFO Team to Make Some Findings Public

The main goal is to see if rival nations are using advanced aircraft

(Newser) - The Pentagon caused a fuss earlier this year when it declassified videos of UFOs. Alas, an unidentified flying object is just that—something pilots couldn't identify, and not necessarily an alien spaceship. But there's been a rising call for more transparency on the subject, including from such heavyweights...

House Passes Defense Bill Trump Promised to Veto

It calls for renaming of military bases that honor Confederate officers

(Newser) - A $740 billion defense policy bill that President Trump threatened to veto has passed the House with a veto-proof 295-125 majority, with 108 Republicans voting in favor of the 2021 Defense Authorization Act and 43 Democrats voting against. The bill calls for military bases and other properties named after Confederate...

Pentagon Bans Confederate Flag, but Not in a Typical Way

New policy lists what flags can be shown at military installations, not which ones can't

(Newser) - After weeks of wrangling, the Pentagon on Friday will ban displays of the Confederate flag on military installations, in a carefully worded policy that doesn't mention the word "ban" or that specific flag. The policy, laid out in a memo obtained by the AP , was described by officials...

Branches Pressure Esper for Confederate Flag Ban

It's the US flag that's placed on coffins, draft policy says

(Newser) - A draft policy circulated by Pentagon leaders would ban the display of the Confederate flag in Defense Department workplaces or public areas by service members and civilian personnel. If approved, the policy would bring the other military services in line with the Marine Corps, which banned Confederate displays on its...

Pentagon Takes Steps Toward Racial Equity in the Services

Esper wants military to recapture leadership on diversity

(Newser) - Recognizing the harm of systemic racism to individuals and the military, Defense Secretary Mark Esper has announced an effort to ensure equity for US service members. Esper made the announcement Thursday in a video, the Washington Post reports, saying the military is "not immune to the forces of bias...

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