National & World Headlines

• The state of commercial item contracting

  Jason Workmaster, off counsel at Covington & Burling LLP, joins host Roger Waldron to discuss the state of commercial item contracting. November 3, 2015

  Off the Shelf

  November 03, 2015
• Congress cuts readiness increases in NDAA

  Congress decided yesterday what programs will get a haircut in freeing up $5 billion in defense spending. Among the programs is the Long Range Strike Bomber and defense readiness increases.

  Defense

  November 03, 2015
• Scott Maucione: Congress expected to finalize defense cuts

  You can almost exhale. The new budget deal between Congress and the White House got the President's signature yesterday. But what about the Defense authorization bill for 2016? President Obama vetoed that one. But now Congress is working on a revised version. Federal News Radio's Scott Maucione has more on the updated bill’s chances.

  Federal Drive

  November 03, 2015
• DoD in Action: N.M. Guard moves rare fossil; Dunford, Carter visit Asia

  View a photo gallery of the variety of activities Defense Department personnel participate in daily around the globe.

  Defense

  November 03, 2015
• DISA’s consolidation binge continues with contracts, processes

  The Defense Information Systems Agency told industry that it needs to reduce the number of procurements it runs and become more efficient in how it manages existing programs. DISA must find 7-to-10 percent savings each year in overhead costs.

  Defense News

  November 03, 2015
• Sometimes the outrage outweighs the offense

  The 1033 program contributes only a fraction of the federal resources that result in what some believe are overly militarized local police departments.

  Tom Temin Commentary

  November 02, 2015
• Carlos Torres: Transfer excess military equipment to civilian law enforcement

  The 1033 program is part of the government's Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services to transfer excess military equipment to civilian law enforcement agencies. Following the unrest in Ferguson, Missouri last August, President Barack Obama ordered a multi-agency review of the program. Now the Department of Defense is asking for some of the equipment they gave out back from the agencies they transferred it to. Carlos Torres is the Branch Chief for the DLA's Law Enforcement Support Office. Federal Drive host Tom Temin asked him about the background of the 1033 program and what they plan to do next.

  Federal Drive

  November 02, 2015
• Scott Maucione: Marine Corps willing to make sacrifices for cyber

  The Marine Corps' second-in-command says continuing budget pressures have forced the service to compromise its capacity for investments in cybersecurity. Yet cyber is one of the top priorities for the service. Federal News Radio's Scott Maucione has more on the Marine Corps' plans.

  Federal Drive

  November 02, 2015
• Congress expected to finalize defense cuts

  Congress is figuring out which programs will feel the pain of a $5 billion cut to defense spending so the plan can fit the new budget deal. House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) said the cuts will affect important programs.

  Defense

  November 02, 2015
• Question X: What is the right level of military spending?

  Federal Drive host Tom Temin says the latest analysis from the Heritage Foundation paints a grim picture of U.S. military strength.

  Tom Temin Commentary

  November 02, 2015
• How Lockheed Martin sold employees on an insider threat program

  Establishing insider threat programs was a key Defense recommendation after the 2013 Navy Yard shootings. Some companies that do business with the government are far ahead and waiting for agencies to catch up. DoD officials now consider aerospace giant Lockheed Martin's program as a model.

  Defense Industry

  October 30, 2015
• DoD is playing catch up with microelectronics supply

  The Defense Department is conducting a study that looks at pairing the agency with industry to manufacture trusted microelectronics.

  Defense

  October 30, 2015
• Charles Tiefer: More to NDAA veto than meets the eye

  When President Barack Obama vetoed the annual defense authorization bill earlier this month, most of the attention was on overall federal spending levels and restrictions on closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay. But in a recent column for Forbes, Charles Tiefer points out that the President raised a lot of other objections having to do with wasteful spending and Congress' ongoing refusal to authorize another round of base closures. Tiefer, a professor of law at the University of Baltimore, told In Depth with Francis Rose the other issues in the President's veto message deserve more public attention than they've gotten.

  All News

  October 30, 2015
• Dakota Wood: Deep look at U.S. military power

  Washington produces lots of opinions about the nation's military power and where it stands in relation to what's going on in the world. Most of them lack coherence, consistency and objectivity. That's according to Dakota Wood, senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation. He's come up with a deeply researched index of U.S. military strength, just released. He spoke to Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

  Federal Drive

  October 30, 2015