Business
Congress Rushes Pentagon $4B for Missile Defense Improvements
The emergency bill is light on details, but it appears to fulfill the military’s wide-ranging November request.
Policy
US Averts Government Shutdown, For Now. But the Potential Harm and Waste Is Growing.
Over the Pentagon’s loud objections, lawmakers pass a 2-week temporary spending measure instead of a budget.
Business
Pentagon’s Ambitious Goal: Launch a Weapons Program in Just 12 Months
The defense acquisition undersecretary is looking to rapid capabilities offices as models for more formal programs.
Policy
Senators Press State Dept. to Drop Hiring Freeze and Shine Light on Reorg Plan
Reforms could hurt 'America's Foreign Service and Civil Service professionals' and put diplomacy at risk, one letter says.
Business
Preaching from the Choir: Conservatives, Defense Execs Beg Trump to Challenge Russia, Make Budget Deal
At the Reagan Presidential Library, the country's biggest defense spending hawks doubt Congress can deliver Trump's promised military buildup.
Science & Tech
A Fight Is Brewing Between Congress and the Military Over Cyber War
Should in-theater commanders be allowed to launch attacks that currently require approval from the national command authority?
Business
Congress May Be Making the Pentagon Amazon's Next Big Customer
Though lawmakers revised the so-called "Amazon amendment," only a small number of companies could provide the government with an e-commerce site.
Policy
Congress Is Concerned About Who Gets to Launch Nuclear Bombs
Here are three questions to consider during and after lawmakers hear testimony on nuclear authority.
Policy
Defense Bill Compromise Boosts 2018 Military Pay Raise
Democrats vow a fight for civilian pay parity.
Policy
Paying Off Post-9/11 War Debt Could Cost $8 Trillion: Report
Analysts say a reckoning is coming — even as Republicans seek tax cuts that will add at least $1.5 trillion to the national debt.
Ideas
DoD is Losing the Budget Endgame
Lawmakers have prioritized tax cuts, and now there’s just one way left for the defense budget to recover.
Ideas
What McCain Knows That Kelly Forgot
One veteran offered a dark picture of a nation estranged from its military—the other, a more hopeful vision of a future brighter than the past.
Business
Top Defense CEO Blasts Washington Budget Gridlock
‘National security is not an entitlement,” said Michael Strianese, chairman and CEO of L3 Technologies.
Policy
Mattis to Generals: Start Talking to the Press
Nine months into the Trump administration, the defense secretary tells senior military leaders to engage with the media — but stay in their lanes.
Science & Tech
Get Lasers Into the Field Faster, Lawmakers Tell the Pentagon
The Senate’s version of the annual defense bill provides $200 million for rapid prototyping of directed energy weapons.
Business
Air Force: We’re Low on Bombs Because Congress Can’t Pass a Budget
It’s hard to persuade arms makers to boost production, even to fight ISIS, without cash on the barrelhead.
Ideas
Winter Is Here, But the US is Not Ready for Cyber War
How can DHS and Congress protect HBO and Equifax when they're slow to protect their own '.gov' domains?
Policy
Get Ready for a Short-Term CR, Congressional Leaders Tell Pentagon
Top House Republicans on defense say it’s not ideal — underfunding has contributed to a rash of recent accidents — but don’t expect a full-year appropriation until December.
Policy
Chasing the Elusive BRAC, Pentagon Says Readiness Is at Stake
Defense officials are changing their pitch for base closures. Will Congress listen this time?
Policy