Military

Navy Sec Defies Trump On SEAL’s Expulsion Review

Reuters reports: U.S. Navy Secretary Richard Spencer said on Friday a Navy SEAL convicted of battlefield misconduct should face a board of peers weighing whether to oust him from the elite force, despite President Donald Trump’s assertion that he not be expelled. “I believe the process matters for good order and discipline,” Spencer told Reuters, weighing in on a confrontation …

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South Korea: Hit Boy Band BTS Must Serve In Military

Reuters reports: Hit South Korean boy band BTS will not be given exemption from mandatory military service, the defense ministry has said, reaffirming its policy of no exceptions for pop stars. The decision is likely to fuel debate in South Korea, which remains technically at war with North Korea, about whether entertainers and athletes should have to do their full …

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Air Force Declines To Eject Avowed White Supremacist

Stars & Stripes reports: For years, Cory Reeves allegedly posted hundreds of messages on a secret online forum for white supremacists under a pseudonym. In now-public posts, Reeves appeared to swap workout routines and diet tips with his like-minded internet friends; he also appeared to paper his town with far-right propaganda, participate in white-nationalist group meetups and share racist memes. …

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Trump Reverses US Navy On Ousting Killer SEAL

The New York Times reports: President Trump on Thursday reversed a decision by the Navy seeking to oust Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher from the elite commando force. Chief Gallagher has been at the center of a high-profile war crime case and was granted clemency by the president on Friday. He was notified on Wednesday that the Navy …

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Scalise: Pardoning Murderers Boosts Military Morale

Politico reports: House Minority Whip Steve Scalise on Sunday voiced his support for President Donald Trump’s pardons of two Army officers who were accused of war crimes, arguing the move boosts morale in the military. “I’ve heard, from our men and women in uniform for years that they felt that they were sidelined because they needed a team of attorneys …

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Trump Celebrates Release Of Pardoned Murderer

Mediaite reports: President Donald Trump celebrated the release of Army 1st Lt. Clint Lorance — whom Trump freed from the remainder of a 19-year murder sentence — by tweeting a video of Lorance reuniting with his family. Trump’s grant of clemency was made over the objections of his own Department of Defense, according to news reports. From the linked Fox …

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Trump Issues Pardons In Three War Crimes Cases

The Washington Post reports: President Trump intervened in three military justice cases involving war-crimes accusations Friday, issuing at least two pardons that will prevent the Pentagon from pursuing future charges against the individuals involved, according to one of their lawyers and a U.S. official. The service members involved were notified by Trump over the phone, said the U.S. official, speaking …

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TODAY: Veterans Group Flies Banner Planes In Multiple Key States Calling Trump A “National Security Threat”

Politico reports: One of the largest progressive veterans groups in the country is launching a new campaign against President Trump on Monday that seeks to raise pressure on several Republican senators up for reelection next year. To mark Veterans Day, VoteVets will fly planes over key Senate battleground states like North Carolina, Arizona, Kentucky and Colorado Monday morning, with a …

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Pentagon Contractor Charged In “Made In USA” Scam

Courthouse News reports: Federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment Thursday that charges a Long Island tech company with rebranding Chinese-made security equipment as “Made in the U.S.A.” before selling them to the U.S. military. The complaint takes aim at Aventura Technologies Inc., run by Jack Cabasso, which allegedly raked in $88 million, including more than $20 million in federal government contracts, …

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Trump Tweets 2017 Medal Of Honor Ceremony Photo But Replaces Image Of Soldier With Baghdadi Raid Dog

The Washington Post reports: In a somber White House ceremony in July 2017, President Trump draped the Medal of Honor around the neck of James McCloughan. He was credited with saving the lives of 10 men in a brutal, days-long battle in Vietnam, and Trump told the former Army medic that “we are in awe of your actions and your …

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Trump Told Mattis To “Screw Amazon” On Contract

CNN reports: A new biography of former Defense Secretary James Mattis reports President Donald Trump personally got involved in who would win a major $10 billion contract to provide cloud computing services to the Pentagon, according to the website Task & Purpose, which writes about military issues. That hotly contested contract was awarded to Microsoft on Friday evening over Amazon …

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US Claims ISIS Leader Killed in Syria Raid [VIDEO]

NBC News reports: The world’s most wanted terrorist, Islamic State group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was the target of a deadly U.S.-led raid in northwestern Syria, sources told NBC News early Sunday. Forensic testing is underway, but officials believe al-Baghdadi is among the dead, the sources said. A U.S. Special Ops mission targeted the ISIS leader near Barisha, in northwestern …

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Pentagon Scorns Amazon, $10B Job Goes To Microsoft

The New York Times reports: The Department of Defense on Friday awarded a $10 billion technology contract to Microsoft over Amazon in a contest that was closely watched after President Trump ramped up his criticism of Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos, and said he might intervene. The 10-year contract for the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure, known as JEDI, had set off …

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US Troops Will Deploy To Protect Syrian Oil Fields

USA Today reports: The Pentagon is preparing to send tanks and armored vehicles to Syrian oil fields, according to a U.S. official – a stunning reversal of President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. forces from the war-torn country after he declared victory over ISIS. The deployment of heavy armor to Syria would represent a significant escalation in the fight, requiring …

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Mattis Mocks Trump’s Draft-Dodging At Gala Dinner

ABC News reports: Former Defense Secretary James Mattis roasted his former boss at the Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York City on Thursday night. “I’m not just an overrated general. I’m the world’s greatest overrated general,” joked Mattis, who received a standing ovation as he stepped to the dais. “I’m honored to be called that by Donald Trump, because …

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GOP Rep Celebrates US Navy With Russian Warship

From the military blog Task & Purpose: On Sunday, the official Twitter account of Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), a decorated Army staff sergeant and freshman congressman from Florida’s 18th district, posted what was probably intended as a simple birthday message to the U.S. Navy featuring an imposing warship contrasted against a vanilla sky. Unfortunately, the unlucky staffer who likely produced …

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US To “Evacuate” Remaining Troops From Syria [VIDEO]

CBS News reports: The U.S. is “preparing to evacuate” about 1,000 U.S. troops from northern Syria “as safely and quickly as possible,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper told “Face the Nation” in an interview Sunday. The move comes a week after President Trump announced the repositioning of several dozen American troops embedded with Kurdish forces in northern Syria, opening the door …

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US Forces Think Turkey Deliberately Fired At Them

The Military Times reports: American troops and former U.S. officials believe a Turkish artillery strike on Friday that landed about 300 meters from a U.S. commando outpost near the Syrian city of Kobani was done deliberately. No U.S. troops were injured in the strike, but U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces said American commandos temporarily withdrew from their observation post on Mishtanur …

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Pentagon Objects To Turkey’s “Incursion” Into Syria

Via press release from the Pentagon: Yesterday, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and Turkish Minister of National Defense Hulusi Akar spoke by phone where they discussed the situation in northeast Syria. Secretary Esper made it clear that the United States opposes Turkey’s uncoordinated actions as they place at risk the progress made by the Defeat-ISIS Coalition. While the Secretary reaffirmed …

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Trump Defiant On Syria: The US Only “Fights To Win”

NBC News reports: The U.S. military has moved its forces away from the Turkish border with northern Syria, after the White House said Sunday night that Turkey would soon begin an operation in a part of northeastern Syria where it wants to resettle Syrian refugees — and that U.S. forces wouldn’t be there to help or stop them. The U.S. …

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