WASHINGTON: Is the Defense Industrial Base study required by the Trump Administration’s new Executive Order the groundwork for a new Buy America push or a bold strategic act reminiscent of President Eisenhower’s Solarium project, begun just four months after he took office? Many of the defense analysts, industry people and acquisition experts I’ve spoken with… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Chronic conflict between Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and the Trump White House has hobbled the nomination process for top Pentagon posts, a source familiar with the Trump personnel team tells Breaking Defense. In several cases, the source said, the Trump team recommended nominees with extensive experience and bipartisan respect — Rep. Randy Forbes, Sen. Jim Talent… Keep reading →

CAPITOL HILL: Rep. Randy Forbes still has plenty of fans, but Sec. Jim Mattis apparently isn’t one of them, which makes Forbes a long shot for Secretary of the Navy. Yes, the withdrawal of Philip Bilden’s nomination for SecNav reopens Forbes’ path to the position, even triggering an endorsement from The Wall Street Journal. But it’s… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Pentagon procurement chief Frank Kendall just approved the Navy’s top-priority program, the Columbia-class nuclear missile submarine, to start detailed design work and engineering. Known in Pentagonese as a Milestone B decision, undersecretary Kendall’s okay lets the Navy spend the $773 million Congress voted for the program in last month’s Continuing Resolution. [CORRECTED:] The projected procurement… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: While big-ticket additions to the Navy budget like F-35 fighters and Littoral Combat Ships didn’t survive conference, there are several smaller but strategic plus-ups in the annual defense policy bill that make a major difference for the fleet, Rep. Joe Courtney told me this afternoon. What’s more, with House Armed Services Committee chairman Mac… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The administration of Donald Trump will probably slash the size of the National Security Council and return it to its traditional role of coordinating national security policy across the national security and intelligence communities. For most of the Obama Administration, conflicting cabinets ruled and battled to often bad effect, one staffed by the actual Cabinet officers… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: While the DC parlor game of musical chairs gathers steam (see headline), some outlines of how President Donald Trump will govern are emerging. Look for two principles to govern much of how Trump initially manages the fundamental truth that people are policy. First, strong deputies will be chosen to ensure mistakes aren’t made and things… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Hope for the best; prepare for the worst. It’s a standard military prescription for dealing with a sometimes hostile and usually unpredictable world. It’s also what an African-American chum told me this morning was his plan for life under President Trump. This guy is a fellow Chicagoan and Cubs fan, so he knows how to… Keep reading →

One of America’s top defense lawmakers, Rep. Joe Wilson, will write an exclusive monthly opinion piece for Breaking Defense. As Breaking D readers know, Rep. Randy Forbes, outgoing chairman of the HASC seapower and power projection subcommittee, started this tradition. But the voters spoke and, sadly, Mr. Forbes is moving on after the election. Wilson,… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: Whoever wins the White House in November will still be hobbled by the spending limits in the Budget Control Act, warned fiscal expert Todd Harrison. Whether BCA goes away, he said, depends much less on whether Trump or Clinton wins, and much more on who controls Congress — above all on whether Reagan defense… Keep reading →