The American defense industry is in a tough spot. With the Pentagon facing sequestration, military draw downs and a deadlocked Congress. The defense community can only prepare for a future of doubt and uncertainty. Steve Grundman is M.A. and George Lund Fellow at The Atlantic Council and former deputy undersecretary of defense for industrial affairs.

The shutdown has some employees working most on furlough. But your status may not be set in stone, as the government’s needs change. Federal News Radio’s Tom Temin wants to know how flexible agencies can be with who’s exempt and who’s not.

Your agency has been preparing for a shutdown for weeks, maybe months. Your employees have been hearing about it for weeks, maybe months. Avoiding shutdown burnout among the employees still working at your agency may not be easy, but it’s important.

Some of just about every federal agency is closed because of the shutdown. But the Thrift Savings Plan is open as usual. Kim Weaver, director of External Affairs at the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, says everything at the TSP is running as usual.

Related Story: TSP bounces back in September after end-of-summer slump

As the Army and Marine Corps reduce their presence in Afghanistan, hundreds of thousands of items of battle-worn equipment is gradually making its way back to the U.S. But the two military services say sequestration has taken a major toll on their ability to get that gear back in shape and back into the hands of warfighters.

Beth Cobert doesn’t have the government credentials to be the deputy director for management at the Office of Management and Budget. But lawmakers believe the senior consultant from McKinsey and Company may just be the type of person the government needs anyways. Federal News Radio’s Jason Miller is here with details on why senators praised Cobert’s experience to be DDM at Wednesday’s nomination hearing.

Congressional leaders are meeting with President Barack Obama today to talk about the shutdown and debt limit. The impasse in Congress that’s causing the shutdown has some members sounding off about how the shutdown is impacting Federal employees. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) talked about the employee angle of the shutdown on the Senate floor today.