NASA Photo
A debate between lawmakers over defense spending is brewing, as a group of progressive House members push for cuts to the defense budget while others argue for a boost to shipbuilding. Read More
Deputy Defense Secretary nominee Kathleen Hicks. Center for Strategic and International Studies Photo
The nominee for the number-two civilian job in the Pentagon told a Senate panel on Tuesday the Navy’s proposed long-term shipbuilding plan would “require future analysis to validate the numbers.” Read More
Defense Secretary nominee Lloyd Austin responds to a question during his Senate Armed Forces Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 19, 2021. DoD Photo
President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Defense Department plans to take another look at the National Defense Strategy should he be confirmed, he told lawmakers on Tuesday. Read More
NASA Photo
The Senate voted 81 to 13 to override President Donald Trump’s veto of the Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act in a rare New Year’s Day session. Read More
Virginia-class submarine Delaware (SSN 791) was moved out of a construction facility into a floating dry dock using a transfer car system in 2018. HII Photo
A group of senators pressed the head of the National Nuclear Security Administration on Thursday to explain why her agency carries over approximately $8 billion in unspent funds year-over-year that lawmakers argued could be put toward building a second Virginia-class submarine next year. Read More
Rep. Mac Thornberry, ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, met with journalists from the Defense Writers Group, an association of news outlets with reporters that cover national security issues, at the George Washington University on Tuesday, June 11, 2019. GWU Photo
The final conference report on the Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act won’t be ready until after the Nov. 3 election, the outgoing ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee said on Wednesday. Read More
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) training ships JS Kashima (TV 3508), left, and JS Shimayuki (TV 3513), right, sail alongside the Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) during an exercise, June 23, 2020. Gabrielle Giffords, part of Destroyer Squadron Seven, is on a rotational deployment, operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as a ready-response force. US Navy photo.
The House and the Senate agree they need to prioritize the Indo-Pacific region in their annual defense policy and spending bills. They don’t quite agree on how far to go in doing that, but an overriding sense that they need to start somewhere this year will likely get them to the creation of a Indo-Pacific fund to counter China, akin to the European Deterrence Initiative created in 2014 to push back against Russia. Read More
USS Arizona underway.
The Navy will name the first two Block V Virginia-class attack submarines in honor of the crews of a pair of battleships forever enshrined in the memory of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
While the Pentagon waits for Congress to approve its Fiscal Year 2020 policy and priorities bill, it appears negotiators seeking to iron out differences between the Senate and House versions of the National Defense Authorization Act are stuck on whether to authorize military funding for border barrier construction.
Rendering of Block V Virginia-class submarine with Virginia Payload Module. General Dynamics Electric Boat Image
General Dynamics Electric Boat is preparing for Columbia-class submarine production while a contract for Block V Virginia-class submarines is in limbo as company and Navy officials work out final details.
