WASHINGTON ― Defense hawks in Congress are pushing a contentious plan to give the Pentagon a stronger hand in crafting nuclear weapons budgets, but the Trump administration has been sending mixed messaging over recent weeks about whether the change is needed. The Senate-passed version of the annual defense policy bill would give the Pentagon-led Nuclear Weapons Council a say in the budget development of the National Nuclear Security Administration, a semi-autonomous agency within the Department of Energy whose mission related to the stockpile’s safety, security, and effectiveness. However, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities Vic Mercado told reporters […]
jim inhofe
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WASHINGTON ― A confirmation hearing has been scuttled for Anthony Tata, President Donald Trump’s embattled pick for the Pentagon’s top policy job, following stiff opposition to the nomination from Democrats and wavering by some Republicans. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said Thursday he and President Donald Trump agreed on the eve of Tata’s confirmation hearing Thursday to at least delay the nomination. Inhofe had to navigate the White House’s refusal to budge on Tata for weeks, even after CNN reported a series of remarks and tweets that were conspiratorial, anti-Muslim and harshly partisan. “There are many Democrats and […]
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s goal to withdraw 10,000 U.S. troops from Germany will take years to execute, according to Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla. Inhofe’s disclosure, after he was briefed by Pentagon officials on the plans, suggests there wouldn’t be the hasty pullout critics feared, but a more drawn-out approach. The troops are potentially a quick-reaction force against Russia and can be deployed rapidly to the Middle East and Africa. “It is clear to me that this concept that will take months to plan, and years to execute,” Inhofe said in a statement after the briefing Wednesday. […]
Don’t take down those Fort Bragg road signs just yet. Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate voted overwhelmingly this week to back legislation forcing the Defense Department to rename military bases honoring Confederate leaders, including Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Fort Hood in Texas and Fort Benning in Georgia. The moves came despite repeated veto threats from President Donald Trump over the issue and parallel new Defense Department orders banning the display of the Confederate battle flag on all installations, amid a military-wide reckoning over divisive symbols from the Civil War. Despite the bipartisan backing in Congress, however, […]
WASHINGTON ― The Senate Armed Services Committee has set an open hearing July 30 for Anthony Tata, President Donald Trump’s embattled pick for the Pentagon’s top policy job ― but that won’t be the first time the committee gathers to hear from the nominee. Tata, a Fox News contributor, staunch ally of the president and a retired Army brigadier general, has had to walk back a series of conspiratorial and controversial tweets after they were first reported by CNN. Among them: calling President Barack Obama “a terrorist leader,” a history of Islamophobic comments and claiming that former CIA Director John Brennan […]
Lawmakers in coming days are expected to hear more details of President Donald Trump’s plan to withdraw thousands of U.S. troops from bases in Germany, but a key Senate leader is already offering his support for the plan. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., said in Tuesday that he backs the idea of shifting American military forces out of Germany to create “a greater number of smaller, well-positioned bases that would increase our reach.” He said exact details still need to be worked out, but so far he sees no reason for opposition to the idea. “Based on my […]
WASHINGTON―The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate rejected a bipartisan measure to block the military from giving offensive surplus equipment to state and local U.S. police departments. The Senate voted 51-49 on the proposed amendment to the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act. The action comes amid civil unrest and a national debate over race and policing in the wake of George Floyd’s death―and amid lobbying from police organizations to maintain the program. The more amendment from Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, was to ban transfers of grenade launchers, bayonets, drones, tracked armored vehicles and high-powered firearms and ammunition, but not prohibit defensive equipment, like body […]
WASHINGTON — The Senate Armed Services Committee has proposed a radical change to how the nuclear weapons budget is formed every year, one which would give the Department of Defense a far stronger hand in crafting the funding for nuclear issues. The language, contained in section 3111 of the SASC’s proposed National Defense Authorization Act, would insert the Pentagon-led Nuclear Weapons Council into the budget development of the National Nuclear Security Administration, a semi-autonomous agency within the Department of Energy that has oversight of America’s nuclear warheads. The move follows a contentious budget fight between DOE and Congressional supporters of […]
WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee is cranking up the heat on Ligado Networks with new legislation that would require the company to cover the costs of any Global Positioning System user — government or commercial — that is hurt by the company’s newly approved use of L-Band spectrum, C4ISRNET has learned. A bill from Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., would escalate the potential cost facing Ligado as it moves to set up a system of networks that government agencies and commercial trade groups alike have said could damage GPS reliability inside the United States. It’s the latest […]
WASHINGTON ― Plans for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, a new military fund to boost deterrence against China in the Pacific, is one step closer to becoming law. The Senate Armed Services Committee has approved nearly $6 billion for the fund in its version of the annual defense policy bill, the panel announced Thursday. It authorizes $1.4 billion in fiscal 2021, which would be $188.6 million above the administration’s budget request, and $5.5 billion for fiscal 2022―and it directs the defense secretary to create a spending plan for all of the funds. “The best way to protect U.S. security and prosperity in […]
New support for an Indo-Pacific Deterrence Initiative suggests it’s a lock for the FY21 National Defense Authorization Act. Source link
A bipartisan group of 30 senators are expected to send the Federal Communications Commission a letter urging it to reverse course on its decision to allow Ligado to deploy a nationwide mobile… Source link
A marathon hearing on Wednesday gave DoD officials a chance to lay out three key arguments against Ligado’s plan for L-Band, but the Senate may not be able to provide any relief. Source link