Military

The New York Times reports: Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has ordered about 2,000 more U.S. troops to prepare to deploy to the Middle East in support of Israel, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, as Israeli forces prepare to launch a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip. The troops are currently stationed in the United States and other locations, …

Politico reports: Sen. Tommy Tuberville is not relenting from his monthslong blockade of military nominations over the Biden administration’s abortion policy — even in the face of one of America’s closest allies going to war. After Hamas attacked Israel, Senate Democrats said it was past time for several top-level military nominees to be approved. But a Tuberville spokesperson confirmed Sunday …

Politico reports: The Pentagon will send ships and aircraft closer to Israel, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced Sunday, demonstrating a major show of force a day after Hamas militants launched attacks across southern Israel. The closest U.S. Navy assets are the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford and its carrier strike group, which is currently deployed to the Mediterranean Sea. The …

The Navy Times reports: A Navy sailor who intervened to halt a shooting at a Colorado nightclub in 2022 received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal on Thursday. Information Technician 2nd Class Thomas James and Army veteran Rich Fierro both confronted an assailant who began firing a high-powered rifle at an LGBTQ nightclub, Club Q, on Nov. 19, 2022, according …

The Hill reports: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the U.S. stands squarely by Israel and will ensure it “has what it needs to defend itself” after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war against Palestinian militants that launched a surprise attack on his country. Austin said in a statement he was “closely monitoring developments in Israel” and extended his condolences …

“I engage with him frequently and he’s alert, sound, does his homework, reads the papers, reads all the read-ahead material. And he’s very, very engaging in issues of very serious matters of war and peace and life and death. So if the American people are worried about an individual who is, you know, someone who’s making decisions of war and …

The Messenger reports: Retiring chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley took a thinly veiled shot at Donald Trump Friday after the former president threatened the top U.S. general. “We don’t take an oath to a king, or queen, or tyrant, or dictator,” Milley said at a ceremony marking his retirement. “We don’t take an oath to a …

First, a reminder from back in June: Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, is investigating how the Defense Department (DoD) will spend taxpayer dollars to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) events during LGBTQ+ Pride month. In a letter sent to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Thursday, Roy demanded that DoD turn over documents and information on every Pride Month celebration sponsored …

The Associated Press reports: A military pilot whose advanced fighter jet went temporarily missing over the weekend is heard repeatedly requesting an ambulance in a perplexing 911 call from the South Carolina home where he had parachuted to safety. The four-minute recording captures the bizarre circumstances for the three unidentified people involved: a North Charleston resident calmly explaining that a …

NBC News reports: The Senate on Wednesday voted to make Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. the nation’s top military officer, marking the first Pentagon confirmation since Sen. Tommy Tuberville put a hold on nominees to protest a Defense Department abortion policy. Brown was confirmed as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in an 83-11 vote. He will …

Axios reports: The military will begin reviewing cases involving LGBTQ+ veterans who may have been forced out of the service under its “don’t ask, don’t tell” (DADT) policy. Thousands of veterans could receive retroactive honorable discharges, giving them access to the full amount of benefits for their service. The Defense Department announced the initiative Wednesday on the 12th anniversary of …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Military Academy, known as West Point, was sued on Tuesday by an anti-affirmative action group challenging the school’s use of race as a factor in student admissions as a violation of the constitutional principle of equal protection. The lawsuit was brought by the same organization that successfully pursued litigation that resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court …

The Charleston Post & Courier reports: The hunt for a missing Marine Corps fighter jet ended with wreckage found in a rural expanse of farmland and swamp on Sept. 18 after a massive search across South Carolina for the elusive $90 million plane. An amalgam of military, law enforcement and civilian searchers scoured a sprawling expanse from the Lowcountry to …

Axios reports: The U.S. Marine Corps is asking for the public’s help in locating an F-35B Lightning II jet after the pilot ejected during a “mishap.” Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina said Sunday that “emergency response teams are still trying to locate the F-35,” worth upwards of $80 million. The pilot was in stable condition after being taken to …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Navy on Monday became the third branch of the military to no longer have a Senate-confirmed leader for the first time in history, as a Republican senator continues to block military nominations. Retiring Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday gave up command on Monday. The Navy, Army and Marine Corps are now all without a …

CBS News reports: A group of LGBTQ+ veterans who were kicked out of the military because of their sexual orientation filed a federal civil rights suit on Tuesday over the Defense Department’s failure to grant them honorable discharges or remove biased language specifying their sexuality from their service records following the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” in 2010. The …

The Associated Press reports: President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to senior U.S. officials. The officials said Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that …

Politico reports: Tommy Tuberville’s abortion-related blockade of military promotions is uncomfortably splintering both the Senate GOP and Alabama Republicans. Now they’ll spend the summer stewing about it. The Alabama senator refused to allow any of the more than 250 stalled military promotions to quickly advance, retribution for the Defense Department allowing paid leave for abortions. Because of Tuberville’s blockade, the …

Forbes reports: The Pentagon is investigating what it has called a “critical compromise” of communications across 17 Air Force facilities by one of its engineers, according to a search warrant obtained by Forbes. The document also details evidence of a possible breach of FBI communications by the same employee, who worked at the Arnold Air Force Base in Tennessee. The …

The Messenger reports: The three United States Marines found dead in a car outside a North Carolina convenience store suffered carbon monoxide poisoning, the Pender County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday. The lance corporals, who were found on Sunday, were identified as Tanner J. Kaltenberg, 19, of Madison, Wisconsin; Merax C. Dockery, 23, of Pottawatomie, Oklahoma; and Ivan R. Garcia, 23, …