National & World Headlines
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World War One era documents have been declassified by the CIA. One document outlines the chemicals and techniques necessary for developing certain types of secret writing ink and a method for opening sealed letters without detection. One question that has come up since the declassification is, why now as opposed to a decade ago when, the case was litigated in court? The revelation at the time was deemed to be a hazard to U.S. national security.
April 25, 2011 -
In the wake of the nuclear crisis in Japan, the Defense Department says it concurs with the State Department\'s determination that the situation in Japan does not pose significant risk to U.S. citizens. As a result, last Friday, the Pentagon ended the voluntary authorized departure of DoD eligible family members from Honshu, Japan. So far approximately 20,000 personnel, approximately 140 aircraft, and more than 20 ships from the U.S. military have supported Operation Tomodachi.
April 25, 2011 -
Changes may be coming at the top at the Pentagon and the CIA. If they are in the works, it\'s difficult to tell who will do what, but as far as CIA Director Leon Panetta is concerned, \"I hope he stays there. I think we wants to stay there. I\'m encouraging him to stay there, says House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers. And he has some advice for the President. \"You may need to find another Secretary of Defense. I think Secretary Gates deserves his time, but I would not make wholesale changes in all of the national security posts all at one time.\"
April 25, 2011 -
The Commission on Wartime Contracting says the United States has misspent tens of billions of dollars on contracts and grants.
April 25, 2011 -
The Army has picked the Google android as the operating system they want to put in the hands of troops on the ground.
April 25, 2011 -
The Air Force Materiel Command will explore the possibility of buyouts to help reduce its workforce. The agency plans to survey its civilian workforce next week to see if there is enough interest in $25,000 buyouts.
April 25, 2011 -
In the Defense department, the goal of consolidating tens of thousands of IT systems and networks into a more manageable structure is not exactly new. But some leaders in the department think with new budget pressures in play, they\'ll be able to make some serious progress.
April 25, 2011 -
In a recent test at the White Sands Missile Range, Raytheon\'s Patriot Air and Missile Defense System successfully launched Lockheed Martin\'s PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement to intercept a threat target. The successful intercept supports General Peter Chiarelli\'s testimony that the technology from the recently-cancelled MEADS program can be harvested for Patriot. Chiarelli made the statements during his testimony at the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing April 5. Currently, 12 countries including the United States have selected Patriot as their Air and Missile Defense System.
April 22, 2011 -
The Inspector General\'s office at VA found 83 per cent of contracts weren\'t being entered, and that made oversight and accountability nearly impossible.
April 22, 2011 -
Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he\'s committed to the Air Force\'s new refueling tanker.
April 22, 2011 -
A new Pentagon inspector general report finds \"procedural and technical weaknesses\" in the Army\'s traffic assessment surrounding its plans to move 6,400 Defense employees to a privately owned office complex in northern Virginia. Rep. Jim Moran, whose district includes the site, said the findings provide the underpinnings for local officials to sue the Pentagon to stop the move.
April 22, 2011 -
The Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command awarded 36 contracts under its OPTARSS II program. The program provides DoD with operational planning, training and more.
April 21, 2011 -
A new report finds the Pentagon used faulty data when it decided to relocate 6,400 Department of Defense workers from Crystal City to Alexandria\'s Mark Center as part of the Base Realignment and Closure Act.
April 21, 2011 -
Former deputy defense secretary Rudy Deleon gives his take on the President\'s call for Defense to slash spending.
April 20, 2011 -
The Pentagon\'s acquisition chief said Wednesday that Defense leaders would \"undoubtedly\" cut more major weapons systems, possibly as soon as next year. But undersecretary of Defense Ashton Carter said there were more savings to be found in other areas of the Defense Department budget. Major weapons procurement makes up only one seventh of DoD\'s spending.
April 20, 2011