Defense
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Cyber challenges are more prevalent than ever. That's driving the need for more people with the professional skills necessary to prevent and mitigate attacks. To that end, the Army Reserve has launched a new partnership to build its network of cyber warriors. The program is designed to train soldiers in cyber warfare — for both the Reserve and private sector employers. Lt. Col. Scott Nelson is the Army Reserve's Cyber P3 Program Manager. He joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin with more on how it all works.
February 26, 2015 -
Some members of Congress propose relying on special operations forces more as defense budgets shrink. But there is a reason special ops is called "special." Steve Bucci is director of the Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign and National Security Policy at the Heritage Foundation, former assistant deputy secretary of defense, and a retired Army Special Forces officer. He's one of the contributors to the new 2015 Index of U.S. Military Strength just out from the Heritage Foundation. His piece is titled "The Importance of Special Operations Forces Today and Going Forward." His piece includes five truths about special forces, and on In Depth with Francis Rose, he said he didn't make them up.
February 25, 2015 -
Chairman John McCain of the Senate Armed Services Committee says the Pentagon doesn't have a sequestration problem. Instead it has a spending problem. Bill Hartung is director of the Arms and Security Project at the Center for International Policy and author of the report "Promising the Sky: Pork Barrell Politics and the F-35." On In Depth with Francis Rose, he said the F-35 program is the perfect starting point for defense acquisition reform.
February 25, 2015 -
The Veterans Affairs Department is requesting $20 million in fiscal 2016 to move its appeals processes from a mix of paper and electronic processes to only electronic. The additional funding is part of VA's $4.13 billion IT request to Congress.
February 25, 2015 -
Bloomberg Government analysts Robert levinson and Cameron Leuthy join host Roger Waldron to to talk about what's in the fiscal year 2016 defense budget. February 24, 2015
February 24, 2015 -
Larry Allen, president of Allen Federal Business Partners, joins host Mark Amtower to discuss the top procurement issues in 2015, and how they are impacting contractors. February 23, 2015
February 23, 2015 -
One of the top priorities for Defense Secretary Ashton Carter is to transform the Defense Department into a better, and cheaper, version of itself. One proposal is to hand more responsibilities over to the private sector. Dan Goure is vice president of the Lexington Institute and former director of the Office of Strategic Competitiveness in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. On In Depth with Francis Rose, he said the private sector model is making a huge difference for the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense.
February 23, 2015 -
FedBid and the Air Force came to an agreement to end the reverse auction company's stay from bidding on new contracts. FedBid must implement and maintain a code of business and ethics conduct program and have a third party report on its efforts for a year. Additionally, Ali Saadat, the founder and former CEO of FedBid, resigned on Feb. 5.
February 23, 2015 -
President Barack Obama's budget request included a small, $5 million item earmarked for a next-generation fighter. And while no one knows exactly what it'll be, it's meant to replace the F/A-18 Super Hornet and EA-18 Growler by 2030. Jerry Hendrix, a senior fellow and director of the Defense Strategies and Assessments Program at the Center for a New American Security, joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive with more on what exactly the new fighter will be capable of — and why it's needed.
February 23, 2015 -
An update to an earlier DoD Reporter's Notebook item on the Pentagon embarking on a new review of the department's use of lowest-price technically acceptable (LPTA) contract awards.
February 23, 2015 -
After having gotten a partial, two-year reprieve from sequestration, the original caps Congress set for the Defense Department in the Budget Control Act (BCA) are scheduled to go back into effect in October.
February 23, 2015 -
Talent acquisition manager Mike Bruni will discuss job trends in the federal government, the kinds of workers that agencies need, and how to land a job in what is a competitive and challenging federal market. February 20, 2015
February 20, 2015 -
The Defense Department will shut off its widely-used Defense Connect Online service in June, and is telling all of its users to transition to a new DISA-provided service before then. But the vendor behind DCO thinks users are hooked, and will continue to provide it for a fee.
February 20, 2015 -
Edward Snowden and Bradley Manning personify the concept of the insider threat. Defending against that threat is now one of the highest priorities for the military and intelligence communities. Retired Army Maj. Gen. Steven Smith is former chief information security officer for the Army. He's now Security Technology Adviser to Metalogix. Pat Park is vice president for public sector at Metalogix. On In Depth with Francis Rose, they explained how agencies can tackle the different types of insider threats.
February 19, 2015 -
Students at three military academies reported fewer sexual assaults during the last school year. An anonymous Pentagon survey backs that up. It shows rates of "unwanted sexual contact" are also declining. While the military struggled last year with sexual assault cases, it seems there's progress on the academic front. Dr. Nate Galbreath, Senior Executive Advisor in DoD's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office, joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to explain what all this might mean for the military itself.
February 19, 2015