Most Overlooked Defense Stories Of 2020!
The most overlooked story of 2020, including by this publication, is that having a president largely divorced from making military decisions worked pretty well for the US military.
Is Army Richest Service? Navy? Air Force? AEI’s Eaglen Peels Back Budget Onion
This year’s battle of the budget between the services has been much more public than any in recent memory, as Breaking D readers know. Mackenzie Eaglen, who writes for us regularly on Congress and the budget, does a deep dive and presents the results of which service really wins in the budget — and why […]
Modern Tech in Indo-Pacific Operations
Explore how networked warfare, AI, and 3D-printed drones are reshaping US Indo-Pacific strategy.
Sen. Warren Medicare Plan = No OCO, Lower Readiness
Sen. Warren: "And as everything from more F-35s to massive bombs never used in combat have migrated into the OCO account, the Department of Defense has been spared from having to prioritize or live within its means. It’s not just bad budgetary practice – it’s wasteful spending."
Budget 2020: A CR, Sequestration And Some Compromises?
The White House defense budget for 2020 falls short of commitments made and actual requirements to meet the military’s strategy, but it begins to shift priorities and start the long process of investing in long-term competition with China and Russia. Washington still lacks the budget details for another week, but here are some initial reflections […]
Trump’s New National Security Strategy: Economics Trumps Military, Human Rights
UPDATED: Adds Mattis Comment On Allies WASHINGTON: While partisans on both sides will try to recast President Trump’s new legally-mandated National Security Strategy in their own terms, we’re going to try and analyze it in terms of what it actually means. One of the wisest and most rational defense strategists in this country, Anthony Cordesman, […]
US Military Advantage Eroding Coz Of BCA: CJCS Dunford
Breaking Defense contributor James Kitfield spoke with Gen. Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during Dunford’s swing through Japan, Singapore, Australia, Wake Island, and Hawaii. Dunford testifies before Congress this week on the administration’s defense budget request. Most important, the chairman tells us he will make the case that the Budget Control Act’s caps “have to be […]
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AI is transforming pilot training and the aircraft they fly
Modeling and simulation get an AI upgrade for more realistic training and improved autonomous platforms.
Trump’s Promised Big Boost To DoD Evaporates In 2018 Budget
Campaign promises of a larger, more ready and fully modernized military have slammed into budget realities as the Trump administration’s fiscal 2018 budget for the Pentagon shows only modest growth above what the Obama administration had projected. Funding at those levels will support a 305-ship Navy, not the 350 ships that candidate Trump proposed back in […]
The Skinny On Trump’s Skinny Budget: Much Still Unclear
The Trump administration’s long awaited “skinny budget”, officially named “America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again”, has arrived. It confirms the $54 billion increase in defense, and proposes to add $30 billion to this year’s (fiscal 2017) budget. It provides a description of what the Trump administration hopes to achieve in defense […]
What Election Will Mean For The Defense Budget
No one has done a better job of predicting the final outcomes of deals on the defense budget since sequestration was made law than Mackenzie Eaglen of the American Enterprise Institute. So we asked her to predict what this election will mean to the 2018 defense budget. With the election tomorrow, we couldn’t think of a […]
Four Service Chiefs Say They Can’t Defend US Under Sequestration
WASHINGTON: Today, we got a very clear look at the biggest problem with sequestration for the military. If the Budget Control Act goes into full effect, the heads of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines told the Senate Armed Services Committee today, they will not be able to protect the United States as they are […]
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Meeting modern airpower needs with faster R&D cycles for propulsion
As aircraft shrink, threats expand, and technology accelerates, aircraft engines must iterate along with the threats.
GOP Candidates Pledge To Fix Unready, Rudderless US Military
WASHINGTON: The men who urgently want to be commander in chief of the United States military offered a glum vision of the state of the armed services last night. Jeb Bush: In this administration, every weapon system has been gutted, in this administration, the force levels are going down to a level where we can’t […]
Senate Votes Overwhelmingly For NDAA; Two GOP Vote No
WASHINGTON: The House couldn’t do it, but the Senate passed a veto-proof vote today for the annual defense policy bill. The final Senate vote, 70-27, included two no votes from GOP Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz, both of whom are trying to run for president. The House voted 270-156, with 37 Democrats joining Republicans […]
Summits Over Substance: Obama Yields To Chinese President Xi
As Washington gears up for the visit of Chinese leader Xi Jinping, right on the heels of the Pontiff, there is a growing urgency for the United States to make clear to Beijing that its behavior is leading to increased tension at both the bilateral and regional level. But, there appears little appetite for […]
They’re Back! Congress Likely To Pass Short Term Budget Deal
Congress comes back after Labor Day and its 535 lawmakers will face one of the most convoluted legislative tangles in recent memory. While there is no clear endgame yet, all parties know what must be done and — roughly — by what time. Up first is the resolution of disapproval for the administration’s Iranian nuclear deal, […]