Defense

  • In this episode, Women of Washington hosts Aileen Black and Gigi Schumm interview Brig. Gen. Tammy Smith, Deputy Chief of Staff for the Army Reserve.

    August 03, 2015
  • The Defense Department's nuclear forces arsenal is getting a close look for affordability. Think tanks like the Government Accountability Office and even the Pentagon itself are all looking at how much money the agency should spend on nuclear stock. Todd Harrison is senior fellow for defense budget studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. He tells In Depth with Francis Rose why he thinks it's important to look at nuclear forces in the context of the whole weapons inventory.

    July 31, 2015
  • Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford will be the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He'll begin his term October first when the current chairman — Army Gen. Martin Dempsey — retires. Retired Air Force Gen. Richard Myers was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2001 to 2005. He tells In Depth with Francis Rose about the challenges he walked into on his first day as chairman and how they might compare to what Dunford has on his plate.

    July 31, 2015
  • The General Services Administration signed its third MOU with a large federal organization to use the professional services governmentwide acquisition contract known as OASIS. In return for its pledge to spend hundreds of millions of dollars a year, DHS receives a lower fee.

    July 30, 2015
  • After nearly 20 years of development, the Marine Corps said its first squadron of F35B joint strike fighters is just about ready for combat. It's the first joint strike fighter model to reach initial operational capability and the Defense Department spends nearly $100 billion in the process so far. Jim Hasik is a senior fellow at the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security at the Atlantic Council. He tells In Depth with Francis Rose what the Pentagon could have spent its money on instead.

    July 29, 2015
  • The DoD 5000.ac will detail a better, agile process for the military to buy services.

    July 29, 2015
  • Federal overseers charged with monitoring the government’s biotoxin safety programs made clear Tuesday that the Army research laboratory which mistakenly sent dozens of batches of live Anthrax to research facilities should have known years ago…

    July 28, 2015
  • The Army laboratory that sent dozens of batches of live Anthrax to research facilities by accident should have known for years that something was wrong with their protocols for handling biotoxins. The Department of Health and Human Services has identified at least four serious safety violations by Dugway Proving Ground over the last decade and issued several citations. More from Federal News Radio’s DoD reporter Jared Serbu.

    July 28, 2015
  • The Art League is hosting an exhibit of artwork created by a soldier recovering from a traumatic brain injury.

    July 24, 2015
  • DoD’s investigation found one facility in Utah sent Anthrax to public and private labs in 20 states and seven countries over the last 10 years, and identified major inconsistencies in DoD’s handling of bioweapons. Military leaders ordered a new investigation of Army facility where the deadline bioagent originated from.

    July 24, 2015
  • The Defense Department wants to change some of its personnel policies for the first time in decades. Acting Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Brad Carson is working on series of recommendations as part of the Pentagon's Force of the Future initiative. Those recommendations are due to Defense Secretary Ash Carter by Aug. 19. Ron Sanders is the vice president of Booz Allen Hamilton and former chief human capital officer for the Office of the Director for National Intelligence. He tells In Depth with Francis Rose about a war gaming exercise he participated in and what the future of the defense workforce might look like.

    July 23, 2015
  • The military lacks the resources it needs for nearly every one of its forces. The Marines are running with two-thirds of the number of battalions it has needed in the past to meet its daily operational needs. The Army is losing 40,000 active duty troops in the next two years. And advanced missile defense programs are underfunded and behind schedule. Michaela Dodge is a senior analyst for defense and strategic policy at the Heritage Foundation. She tells In Depth with Francis Rose that DoD and the next administration are in desperate need of a new nuclear game plan.

    July 22, 2015
  • Lockheed Martin plans to sell its IT business and acquire helicopter-maker Sikorsky for $9 billion. It's a deal with far-reaching consequences — not just for Lockheed and Sikorsky parent United Technology, but also for the broader defense industrial base. Jesse Holler is a quantitative analyst at Bloomberg Government. He joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive with more analysis on this deal.

    July 22, 2015
  • Gen. Mark Milley said at his confirmation hearing to become the new Army chief of staff that his service still could meet the demand signal for Army forces, despite recent budget cuts. That could change, though, if demands continue to increase and if budgets continue to decrease.

    July 22, 2015
  • The nominee to be the new Army Chief of Staff -- General Mark Milley -- says he believes the troop cutting plans the Army finalized this month will leave a force that’s still capable of doing all it’s being asked to. But that capability also comes with a high level of risk -- including the risk of more casualties in combat. More from Federal News Radio’s DoD reporter Jared Serbu.

    July 21, 2015