Department of Defense

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Judge in Amazon Suit Holds Up Microsoft's $10B Cloud Deal

Filing accuses Trump of bias, affecting decision on Pentagon contract

(Newser) - A federal judge ordered a halt Thursday to the cloud contract the Pentagon awarded to Microsoft. Amazon has argued bias in the selection of Microsoft for the contract, which could be worth as much as $10 billion over 10 years, CNBC reports. After the winner was narrowed down to Amazon...

Congress Doesn't Get Briefings on Iran After All

State, Defense departments scrap scheduled meetings at the last minute

(Newser) - The State and Defense departments have called off three classified briefings for members of Congress, who have questions about the Iran situation, that were scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. House committee members were expecting to hear from State Department officials about embassy security, CNN reports, while a Senate panel was...

Amazon to File for Restraining Order in Microsoft-DOD Deal

Former says latter was only awarded $10B contract after 'behind-the-scenes attacks' from Trump

(Newser) - Amazon has long been suspicious that it lost out to Microsoft on a lucrative $10 billion cloud computing deal with the US military only because of President Trump's intervention, and now Jeff Bezos' behemoth has taken its latest step to stymie the latter from proceeding with that project. CNN...

US: We Just Hit Iran and Syria
US: We Just Hit Iraq and Syria
Dec 29, 2019 12:32 PM CST

US: We Just Hit Iraq and Syria

The US is targeting militia blamed for killing an American

(Newser) - The US says it has carried out military strikes in Iraq and Syria targeting a militia blamed for an attack that killed an American contractor, the AP reports. US forces conducted "precision defensive strikes" against five sites of Kataeb Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia, Defense Department official Jonathan Hoffman...

Judge Rules Against Trump Administration in Border Wall Case

Federal judge says $3.6B in Pentagon funds can't be diverted to wall construction

(Newser) - The secretary of defense in September authorized the diverting of $3.6 billion in Pentagon funds to build the border wall, but on Tuesday, a federal judge in Texas blocked the Trump administration from doing that, CNN reports. El Paso County, Texas, and Border Network for Human Rights had sued...

Pentagon Trying to Plan for Trump's Next Sudden Move

If president suddenly decides to pull troops out of Afghanistan, DOD officials want to be ready

(Newser) - There's no current instruction from the White House to yank troops out of Afghanistan. But amid recent developments in Syria , the Pentagon is taking no chances and has been setting up a contingency plan in anticipation of any surprise directives from President Trump on Afghanistan. Current and former Defense...

Pentagon: We're Sending Jets, Other Air Defense to Saudis

Defense Secretary Mark Esper announces move after Iran claims 2 missiles struck its tanker

(Newser) - The US will send fighter jets and additional air defenses to Saudi Arabia to defend the kingdom against Iran amid heightened tensions between the two Middle Eastern adversaries, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday. Esper announced the deployment of several dozen fighter jets, along with other aircraft and additional air...

US Sending Troops to Saudi Arabia, UAE

No military strike against Iran yet, though

(Newser) - The Pentagon on Friday announced it will deploy additional US troops and missile defense equipment to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as President Trump has at least for now put off any immediate military strike on Iran in response to the attack on the Saudi oil industry. Defense...

Supreme Court: Border Wall Can Be Built With DOD Funds

$2.5B in Defense Department money can now be tapped by Trump administration for sections of wall

(Newser) - The Supreme Court cleared the way Friday for the Trump administration to tap billions of dollars in Pentagon funds to build sections of a border wall with Mexico. The court's five conservative justices gave the administration the green light to begin work on four contracts it has awarded using...

Trump Officially Names Defense Nominee

Says he'll nominate acting secretary Patrick Shanahan

(Newser) - President Trump on Thursday said he will nominate Patrick Shanahan to be his second secretary of defense. Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, has been leading the Pentagon as acting secretary since Jan. 1, a highly unusual arrangement for arguably the most sensitive Cabinet position, the AP reports. "Acting Secretary...

Naval Academy Transgender Ban Starts in 2020

Coast Guard, Air Force academies say they are also complying with Trump policy

(Newser) - President Trump's ban on transgender people serving in the military is beginning to take effect at the US Naval Academy and other military institutions. The Defense Department confirmed to the Capital Gazette this week that the Naval Academy will stop accepting transgender students as of 2020, but those enrolled...

Dems Cry Foul as Pentagon Transfers $1B for Border Wall

Defense chief Shanahan will be grilled by a House panel over the move

(Newser) - "Christmas came early this week," Donald Trump Jr. tweeted Monday night after the Pentagon authorized the transfer of $1 billion to build 57 miles of border wall. The transfer is the first under the emergency declared last month by President Trump, who retweeted his son's remark. In...

Pentagon: Our Bases Are Flooding
Pentagon Has Bad
News About Its Bases
Jan 20, 2019 11:40 AM CST

Pentagon Has Bad News About Its Bases

Seems climate change is affecting mission-critical installations

(Newser) - A new Pentagon report says wildfires, drought, and flooding fueled by climate change are threatening two-thirds of key US military bases, the Military Times reports. Posted online Friday, the report looks at 79 mission-critical installations across the Army, Air Force, and Navy, but not the Marine Corps. The report says...

Mattis Stepping Down as Defense Secretary

Resignation letter implies criticism of Trump's Syria decision

(Newser) - Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is stepping down from his post, President Trump announced Thursday, after the retired Marine general clashed with the president over a troop drawdown in Syria and Trump's go-it-alone stance in world affairs. Mattis, perhaps the most respected foreign policy official in Trump's administration, will...

The $7M Legwear to Turn US Troops Into 'Super Soldiers'

ONYX exoskeleton being developed by Lockheed Martin to reduce weight, help troops move better

(Newser) - The Army is pushing for a new generation of "super soldiers," and critical in that effort is a cutting-edge technology first used to help people with serious medical conditions (e.g., multiple sclerosis, osteoarthritis) stay on the move. Reuters reports the Pentagon is pumping nearly $7 million into...

&#39;US Military Superiority Is No Longer Assured&#39;
'US Military Superiority
Is No Longer Assured'
NEW REPORT
Nov 14, 2018 8:05 AM CST

'US Military Superiority Is No Longer Assured'

Commission warns Russia, China could prevail in war

(Newser) - A new report to Congress delivers a "flashing red" warning of a national security crisis. It's no migrant caravan, but the general degradation of American military might. "The US military could suffer unacceptably high casualties and loss of major capital assets in its next conflict. It might...

US Troops Aren't Just Prepping for the Migrant Caravan

There are also armed militias and criminal organizations, documents show

(Newser) - Troops headed for the US-Mexico border aren't just aiming to help prevent migrant entry—they have unregulated militias and criminal organizations on their minds, too. According to planning documents obtained by Newsweek , the Department of Defense is aware of nearly 200 armed militias already operating along the southwest border....

Pentagon to Hackers: Go Ahead, Access Russia's Cyber Systems

It's reportedly part of DOD plan in preparation for cyberattack if Russia interferes with midterms

(Newser) - What may soon become a more "regular currency of war": cyberattacks, per the Center for Public Integrity , and it notes that the US Department of Defense may start cashing in as early as next week. Current and former senior US officials reveal to the investigative journalism nonprofit that the...

Audit: 'Nearly All' of DOD's New Weapons Systems Are Vulnerable

GAO analysis finds rampant cybersecurity issues at the Pentagon

(Newser) - A new report out of the Government Accountability Office says the Department of Defense is "just beginning to grapple" with vulnerabilities in most of its new weapons systems. The upshot of the 50-page GAO analysis , per NPR : that, based on five years' worth of tests, "nearly all" of...

After Child Deaths in Yemen, Democrats Write 3 Letters

House and Senate Democrats want info on US involvement in Yemen airstrikes

(Newser) - Three letters over the last three days. That's how many messages House and Senate Democrats have penned this week demanding the US be forthcoming with information on its involvement in Yemen after an airstrike there last week killed at least 40 kids . Critics say there could be thousands of...

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