World Powers Meet To Prop Up Lebanese Army

World Powers Meet To Prop Up Lebanese Army
World Powers Meet To Prop Up Lebanese Army

Unlike previous conferences designed to provide training, weapons or military hardware, the meeting was centered on finding ways to bolster the cohesion, resilience, and stability of the Lebanese Armed Forces.

2020 Budget: Army Shifts $31B To Modernization, Readiness

2020 Budget: Army Shifts $31B To Modernization, Readiness
2020 Budget: Army Shifts $31B To Modernization, Readiness

That’s $6 billion more than previously announced — but it all comes at the cost of almost 200 cut, cancelled, or slowed-down programs, each with backers in Congress.

DoD: “Months” Before Any Work Can Be Approved For Border Wall

DoD: “Months” Before Any Work Can Be Approved For Border Wall
DoD: “Months” Before Any Work Can Be Approved For Border Wall

PENTAGON: More troops are heading to the US border with Mexico, Pentagon officials said on Friday. That brings the number deployed from the current 5,000 to about 6,000, even as the Pentagon considers transferring close to $4 billion to support the Border Patrol and build infrastructure. About 2,100 of the troops deployed currently are National…

‘Thousands’ More Troops To US Border, But Colombia Deployment Unclear: Shanahan

‘Thousands’ More Troops To US Border, But Colombia Deployment Unclear: Shanahan
‘Thousands’ More Troops To US Border, But Colombia Deployment Unclear: Shanahan

Shanahan spent much of his first formal (albeit off-camera) Pentagon pressroom briefing as SecDef emphasizing continuity with his ousted predecessor, Gen. Jim Mattis. He made a point of praising Mattis’s National Defense Strategy, America’s allies, and even the press – not exactly favorites of President Donald Trump.

Top HASC Republican Rejects Using Defense Funds For Border Wall

Top HASC Republican Rejects Using Defense Funds For Border Wall
Top HASC Republican Rejects Using Defense Funds For Border Wall

“I am opposed to using defense dollars for non-defense purposes,” Rep. Mac Thornberry said. “Seems to me we ought to fund border security needs on their own and not be taking it from other accounts.”

Trump Cuts, Democrats Won’t Stop Army Modernization, Growth: Reading Between Sec. Esper’s Lines

Trump Cuts, Democrats Won’t Stop Army Modernization, Growth: Reading Between Sec. Esper’s Lines
Trump Cuts, Democrats Won’t Stop Army Modernization, Growth: Reading Between Sec. Esper’s Lines

The defense budget may be caught between doves on the left and budget hawks on the right, but so far Army Secretary Mark Esper isn’t ceding any ground.

Trump Says Troops Heading to Border

Trump Says Troops Heading to Border
Trump Says Troops Heading to Border

Will Trump rip a page from the Obama playbook in sending troops to the border with Mexico?

Trump, Kelly, & The Coast Guard: Exclusive Interview With Adm. Zukunft

Trump, Kelly, & The Coast Guard: Exclusive Interview With Adm. Zukunft
Trump, Kelly, & The Coast Guard: Exclusive Interview With Adm. Zukunft

With the election of Donald Trump as the next President of the United States and with Trump’s nomination of Gen. John Kelly for Secretary of Homeland Security, life is going to change for the US Coast Guard. Trump’s campaign focused intently on border security, asking a fundamental question: Why do we send thousands of troops…

It’s Time to Take Donald Trump Seriously

It’s Time to Take Donald Trump Seriously
It’s Time to Take Donald Trump Seriously

Donald Trump is going to be president, notwithstanding the handwringing in the national security policy community about whether they should agree to serve in his administration (here, here, here, here, here).   Concerns are understandable given Trump’s unorthodox campaign and often extreme statements.  But there is an element of hubris in these commentaries and in discussions I…