The clock is ticking, and the Senate, where floor time is always at a premium, has only 35 days in session after July 4th before fiscal 2020 begins (August is mostly recess, unless the Senate decides to enjoy the swelter of a Washington summer).

Hell hath no fury like a lawmaker betrayed. This week, the House will take up the crucial National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Congress’ primary instrument to oversee the U.S. military. Though the NDAA has passed for 58 straight years, partisan political choices threaten to end that streak.     The Democratic House passed out of… Keep reading →

After five months on the job, the Pentagon’s Acting SecDef is ousted for a new Acting SecDef — keeping the Trump administration’s carousel wheel spinning.

A junior GOP congressman will challenge the Democratic House leadership to restore $96 million in funding for intermediate-ranged conventional missiles, cut by the Democratic majority for fear the new weapons would reignite an arms race that ended in 1987.

Despite Democratic chairman Adam Smith’s best efforts, the defense budget is likely to creep back up to the full $750 billion the administration asked for.

The full GAO decision undermines one of ATEC’s arguments to overturn the award to rival GE, technical superiority, but it reinforces another: risk.

The House Armed Services Committee starts a marathon wrangle on the Pentagon budget, complete with dueling Dickens & Shakespeare quotes, with a detour to debate paint schemes for Air Force One and renaming a key intelligence position.

Democratic chairman Adam Smith wants to focus on the “cyber fight with Russia and China… that’s really going to happen.”

The top HASC Republican outlines some of the amendments he plans to add to the HASC 2020 defense policy bill, previewing coming debates with the Senate.

HASC calls on Pentagon for “near- and long-term plans and options to ensure resilience” of the nuclear command, control and communications network, including requirements for survivability and protection of the supply chain.