Thursday, May 9, 2024
Tony Bertuca is chief editor of Inside the Pentagon, the flagship publication of InsideDefense, where he focuses on defense budget and acquisition policy. He previously worked for the Sun-Times News Group in his hometown of Chicago, IL, and at the New Hampshire Union Leader in Manchester, NH. Tony has also served as managing editor of Inside the Army. He has a master's degree in journalism from Boston University.
U.S. military officials have sent Congress more than $30 billion in “unfunded priorities lists” separate from their regular budget request, but civilian leaders at the Pentagon support repealing the law requiring that the annual lists be sent to lawmakers, who often use them as a blueprint for increasing the defense budget.
Leaders on the House Appropriations Committee said today they would like to see a higher fiscal year 2025 topline for defense spending, despite the capped $850 billion budget mandated by law, while also throwing their support behind Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) piecemeal plan to pass a $95 billion security supplemental spending package.
After months of debate and party infighting, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) today released three bills that would provide $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific region, a move that could cost him his speakership if GOP hardliners seek his ouster.
The Republican chairmen of key congressional defense and national security committees released a joint statement today supporting Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) $95 billion supplemental spending proposal, which would provide aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has spoken with his Chinese counterpart Minister of Defense Adm. Dong Jun, establishing a line of communication that has been severed for nearly two years.
The Pentagon is asking Congress to consider a proposal that would streamline the technology development phase of defense acquisition, or milestone A, to better tailor the procurement process for specific weapons and to cut redundant documentation burdens.
Senior defense officials are slated to appear at numerous hearings on Capitol Hill this week to discuss the military's fiscal year 2025 budget request.
Senior House and Senate appropriators this week said they believe the congressionally mandated cap on fiscal year 2025 defense spending is too low to address the Pentagon's requirements and signaled that they intend to do something about it.
U.S. Strategic Command has sent Congress an unfunded priority list without identifying any unmet needs that could use additional funding, according to a document obtained by Inside Defense.
Gen. Christopher Cavoli, chief of U.S. European Command and supreme allied commander of NATO, said today that Russia currently has a 5-1 advantage over Ukraine when it comes to firing artillery shells, an alarming mismatch that in the coming weeks will be 10-1 if Congress doesn't pass a supplemental security spending bill to provide Kyiv with additional U.S. weapons.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. C.Q. Brown told senators today that the U.S. defense industrial base would benefit to the tune of $50 billion if Congress would pass a supplemental security spending package that would, among other things, provide weapons to Ukraine and replenish U.S. stocks, further surging domestic weapons production.
The Senate Armed Services Committee announced today it will begin work on its version of the fiscal year 2025 defense authorization bill on June 12, with subcommittee work set to begin June 11.
U.S. Africa Command has sent Congress an unfunded priorities list totaling more than $500 million, highlighting the need to counter armed drones in the region as -- according to a document obtained by Inside Defense -- it is “only a matter of time before U.S. forces in East Africa are attacked” by enemy drones or missiles.
Defense officials from the U.S., U.K. and Australia said today they are considering including Japan in Pillar II of the AUKUS security agreement, which supports developing and fielding emerging weapons technologies focused on the Indo-Pacific region.
The week ahead is packed with events including numerous congressional hearings and two large conferences featuring senior Pentagon officials.
U.S. European Command has sent Congress a $141 million unfunded priorities list, highlighting the need for new network technology, according to a document obtained by Inside Defense.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. C.Q. Brown are scheduled to appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee on April 9 to discuss the fiscal year 2025 defense budget request alongside Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord.
The Defense Department is asking Congress to consider legislation that would allow for the streamlining of the milestone B phase of the weapon system acquisition process, which, according to DOD, currently suffers from a "bureaucratic bottleneck."
The National Guard Bureau has sent Congress a $2.7 billion unfunded priorities list for fiscal year 2025, highlighting an unmet need for various readiness spending as well as big-ticket aircraft -- like the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter -- that could not be procured due to "fiscal constraints," according to a document obtained by Inside Defense.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. C.Q. Brown said he and other officials are working hard to get lawmakers to support a $95 billion supplemental spending package that would inject tens of billions of dollars into the U.S. defense industry, while also aiding Ukraine and Israel.