Tag Archives: Rep. Mac Thornberry

Thornberry: Budget Control Act Limits on Defense Spending Could End Soon

Thornberry: Budget Control Act Limits on Defense Spending Could End Soon

House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) traveled to Europe in mid-April with several members of Congress to visit troops stationed overseas and to meet with our allies in the region. Among other stops, he met with Maj. Gen. Niel Nelson, commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa, right. Photo courtesy Thornberry’s official Facebook page.

ARLINGTON, Va. — Expect Congress to consider reversing the nearly five-year policy of limiting Department of Defense spending, and either amend or repeal the 2011 Budget Control Act soon, the chair of the House Armed Services Committee said on Wednesday. Read More

Marine Corps Orders 24-Hour Operational Pause for All Aviation Units Within Next 2 Weeks

Marine Corps Orders 24-Hour Operational Pause for All Aviation Units Within Next 2 Weeks

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jesse Schmitt, a powerline mechanic with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 232, gives directions to an F/A-18C Hornet at Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) Hyakuri Air Base, Japan, July 18, 2017. US Marine Corps photo.

The Marine Corps ordered all its aviation units to hold a 24-hour stand-down at some point in the next two weeks to take a break from operations and focus on flight safety and fundamentals, according to a service news release. Read More

House Armed Services Committee Debates Hypoxia, LCS Buys, CVN-78 Shock Trials, Flight III Upgrade Schedule

House Armed Services Committee Debates Hypoxia, LCS Buys, CVN-78 Shock Trials, Flight III Upgrade Schedule

The House Armed Services Committee passed its annual defense bill on Thursday after a 14-hour markup, sending the bill to the full House of Representatives with no major changes to its recommended procurement profile.

Though few amendments that passed directly affect Navy and Marine Corps programs, several that failed or were withdrawn sparked serious debates about how the Navy ought to address pressing issues of the day: hypoxia concerns in the Navy’s fighter fleet, how to transition from the Littoral Combat Ship, industry’s ability to upgrade to the Flight III guided-missile destroyer design and more. Read More

House Defense Bill Pushing For $640B In Base Budget; Would Trade Lower Top Line For Long-Term Budget Stability

House Defense Bill Pushing For $640B In Base Budget; Would Trade Lower Top Line For Long-Term Budget Stability

House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) traveled to Europe in mid-April with several members of Congress to visit troops stationed overseas and to meet with our allies in the region. Among other stops, he met with Maj. Gen. Niel Nelson, commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa, right. Photo courtesy Thornberry’s official Facebook page.

The House’s 2018 defense bill is likely to go far beyond the Pentagon’s spending request, with House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) telling reporters he wants to see a $640-billion top line for the base budget that would largely include items in the services’ unfunded priorities lists. Read More

PACOM Hearings Preview Spending Needs In Coming Years; Munitions, SSN Shortfalls Must Be Addressed

PACOM Hearings Preview Spending Needs In Coming Years; Munitions, SSN Shortfalls Must Be Addressed

Sailors aboard the Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723) stand topside as the submarine returns home to Guam on Dec. 8, 2016. Oklahoma City, one of four forward-deployed submarines homeported in Apra Harbor, returned to Guam this morning after an eight-month maintenance period known as Docking Selected Restricted Availability. US Navy Photo

U.S. Pacific Command operations were the focus of House and Senate armed services committee hearings this week, and PACOM commander Adm. Harry Harris’ testimony may have provided a glimpse at what he’d like to see in the Fiscal Year 2018 and beyond budget requests. Read More

PACOM: Carl Vinson CSG Can Defend Itself Against Anything North Korea Fires At It

PACOM: Carl Vinson CSG Can Defend Itself Against Anything North Korea Fires At It

USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) transits the Philippine Sea while conducting a bilateral exercise with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. US Navy Photo

U.S. Pacific Command commander Adm. Harry Harris said the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group can “absolutely” defend itself against anything North Korea could shoot at it, despite media reports to the contrary. Read More

Thornberry: Trump Budget Too Small; Pentagon Needs $91B More Than Defense Spending Caps Allow

Thornberry: Trump Budget Too Small; Pentagon Needs $91B More Than Defense Spending Caps Allow

Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Robert B. Neller visits the Fleet Readiness Center Southwest (FRCSW) at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif., Feb. 19, 2016. Neller toured the depot to observe the FA-18 maintenance repair process. US Marine Corps photo.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The House Armed Services Committee chairman wants a defense spending increase nearly 70 percent larger than what the White House has called for –$91 billion, compared to President Donald Trump’s $54 billion – above what spending caps allow for Fiscal Year 2018. Read More

Kendall Warns Against Splitting Top Pentagon Acquisition Job

Kendall Warns Against Splitting Top Pentagon Acquisition Job

Frank Kendall, under secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics in 2014. US Army Photo

Frank Kendall, under secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics in 2014. US Army Photo

Frank Kendall again warned against splitting the duties of the Pentagon’s top civilian for acquisition, technology and logistics into two positions – one for the research and engineering and the other for acquisition and sustainment. Read More

Thornberry: Pentagon Needs Support From Other Agencies, Allies to Combat Threats

Thornberry: Pentagon Needs Support From Other Agencies, Allies to Combat Threats

Maritime forces from 17 nations are underway in formation for BALTOPS 2015. BALTOPS is an annually recurring multinational exercise designed to enhance flexibility and interoperability, as well as demonstrate resolve of allied and partner forces to defend the Baltic region on June 8, 2015. US Navy Photo

Maritime forces from 17 nations are underway in formation for BALTOPS 2015. BALTOPS is an annually recurring multinational exercise designed to enhance flexibility and interoperability, as well as demonstrate resolve of allied and partner forces to defend the Baltic region on June 8, 2015. UK Royal Navy Photo

House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) laid out a five-point strategy to guide the government in getting national and global security back on track, calling for a whole-of-government and international approach to dealing with threats. Read More