Military

Politico reports: For the first time in more than 100 years, the Marine Corps has no Senate-confirmed leader. And despite the retirement of Commandant Gen. David Berger, there’s no inkling that the situation will change any time soon. Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s seven-month hold on all senior military promotions ran head-on into the long military history of smooth leadership handovers during …

The Hill reports: Defense officials on Wednesday announced that, in the wake of junior Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira‘s alleged leaking of classified documents online, the Pentagon is changing how military personnel access classified information and implementing measures aimed at better identifying “insider threats.” A review of Pentagon policies and procedures concluded that the Defense Department “should improve its security …

Politico reports: A proposed amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) would end cannabis testing for members of the military — both when they’re enlisting and accepting a commission. If the amendment is included in the NDAA, H.R. 2670 (118), it would address a growing issue in the U.S. military: the increasing number of recruits …

Congress Minutes reports: Republicans are gearing up for another debate over Confederate-named Defense Department assets after GOP appropriators added a little-noticed amendment into a funding bill. The GOP friction stems from a push by Rep Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) who publicly revived the discussion by trying to prevent funding in an energy and water development bill from being used to rename …

The Wall Street Journal reports: A top secret U.S. Navy acoustic detection system designed to spot enemy submarines first heard the Titan sub implosion hours after the submersible began its mission, officials involved in the search said. The Navy began listening for the Titan almost as soon as the sub lost communications, according to a U.S. defense official. Shortly after …

Roll Call reports: Provisions to defund the Pentagon’s anti-extremism efforts are on tap for potential inclusion in the fiscal 2024 defense policy bill when members of the House Armed Service Committee hold their marathon markup session on June 21. Those amendments, along with a third to evaluate staffing levels within the Defense Department’s so-called diversity, equity and inclusion office, offer …

The New York Times reports: A federal grand jury on Thursday indicted Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, who posted dozens of secret intelligence reports and other sensitive documents on a gaming server, on six counts of retaining and transmitting classified national defense information. The filing of criminal charges against Mr. Teixeira, 21, comes two months after F.B.I. agents arrested him …

Yahoo News reports: A Florida businessman and prominent political donor identified himself as the owner of a Cessna passenger aircraft that sparked panic as it flew into restricted U.S. airspace over Washington, D.C., Sunday—before crashing into the Virginia wilderness, according to a report. The aircraft, which authorities said was piloted by a person who lost consciousness, prompted an aerial chase …

The Washington Post reports: An authorized Defense Department plane caused a sonic boom heard across the D.C. region Sunday afternoon, officials in Maryland said. The sonic boom was related to an incident involving a Cessna that crashed in Virginia, three people with knowledge of the situation said. Two of them said the Cessna was unresponsive when hailed by authorities, causing …

The Hill reports: The Navy’s official Instagram and Twitter accounts have apparently taken down posts celebrating the start of Pride Month. The service’s Instagram account Thursday featured a post depicting a fighter jet with the LGBTQ flag colors in its wake, but by Friday morning the image was gone. In a statement to The Hill, a Navy spokesperson acknowledged the …

ABC News reports: A new sign on base Friday morning signified a new era for the military institution in Cumberland County formerly known as Fort Bragg. Fort Bragg shed its Confederate namesake to become Fort Liberty on Friday, June 2, 2023. It’s a change that some veterans view as a small but important step in making the U.S. Army more …

NBC News reports: Pentagon leaders have stepped in to stop a drag show scheduled for Thursday at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, according to two defense officials and a U.S. official. The show, which was in celebration of Pride Month, was approved by Air Force leaders, but Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of …

CNN reports: The Air National Guardsman who is accused of posting a trove of classified documents to social media was repeatedly warned by his superiors in the Air Force over his mishandling of classified documents, prosecutors say. In court documents arguing for Jack Teixeira’s continued detention, prosecutors said that the 21-year-old’s “willful disregard” of his obligation to protect classified information …

The Stars & Stripes reports: The Air Force has suspended two commanding officers linked with Jack Teixeira, a member of the same military unit who is accused of posting a trove of classified government documents online. The commander of the 102nd Intelligence Support Squadron and a detachment commander — who oversees administrative support — were suspended “pending further investigation into …

The New York Times reports: Jack Teixeira, the Air National Guardsman accused of posting classified documents online, repeatedly tried to obstruct federal investigators and has a “troubling” history of making racist and violent remarks, Justice Department lawyers said in a court filing late Wednesday. In an 18-page memo, DOJ lawyers argued that Airman Teixeira needed to be detained indefinitely because …

The New York Times reports: The Air National Guardsman accused of leaking classified documents to a small group of gamers had been posting sensitive information months earlier than previously known and to a much larger chat group, according to online postings reviewed by The New York Times. In February 2022, soon after the invasion of Ukraine, a user profile matching …

The Wall Street Journal reports: A social-media account overseen by a former U.S. Navy non-commissioned officer—a prominent online voice supporting Russia’s war on Ukraine—played a key role in the spread of intelligence documents allegedly leaked by Airman First Class Jack Teixeira, reposting files from obscure online chat rooms. A purported Russian blogger known as Donbass Devushka, which translates as Donbas …

The Washington Post reports: Jack Teixeira, the Massachusetts Air National Guard member suspected of leaking a trove of classified military intelligence, was charged Friday with retention and transmission of national defense information and willful retention of classified documents. Teixeira, 21, appeared shortly after 10 a.m. Eastern before Magistrate Judge David Hennessy of the U.S. District Court for the District of …

The New York Times reports: The 21-year-old National Guard airman was frantic as he joined a call with members of a small online gamer community that has improbably ended up at the center of a federal investigation into a major U.S. security breach. It sounded as if the airman, Jack Teixeira, was in a speeding car, said a member of …

The New York Times reports: The leader of a small online gaming chat group where a trove of classified U.S. intelligence documents leaked over the last few months is a 21-year-old member of the intelligence wing of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, according to interviews and documents reviewed by The New York Times. The national guardsman, whose name is Jack …